


Trauma

by Vixella



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Gangs, Mafia EXO, Reader-Insert, Single Parents, Smut, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-14
Updated: 2019-09-13
Packaged: 2020-03-05 12:30:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 49,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18828724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vixella/pseuds/Vixella
Summary: Desperate for a job and having been disowned, you’re in a pinch. So you let your best friend help you and find yourself working as a babysitter. Just one problem - He didn’t mention that you were babysitting for a hitman for one of the biggest Mafias in town.





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> This series has been up on my AFF and Tumblr for a while and I figured that it was time to start posting it here! I would love feedback on it as I would like to improve writing this genre. Action scenes are something new to me!

Sometimes, it really surprised Baekhyun just how easily things could fall into place. This was going far, far too smoothly for his liking. He preferred for things to be a bit more of a challenge. In his experience, robbing a bank wasn’t supposed to be this simple.   **  
**

“You can kill the cameras.” He said quietly, not bothering to say who exactly he was speaking to. There was only one of them that could do that in the first place.

“Got it… Soyeon put that down! No no no, not that!” Sehun whined as a loud crash resounded through Baekhyun’s earpiece.  

“She seems to be keeping you on your toes,” Baekhyun chuckled, stepping over the guard, that had both his wrists and ankles cable tied, lying in a heap on the floor in the security room.

“She definitely doesn’t take after you in the stealth department, Baekhyun. Are you sure she’s yours?” Chen piped in with a laugh. Baekhyun wasn’t even going to bother responding to that one.

“I’m never doing this again. I love your daughter Baekhyun, I really, really do… but she just destroyed one of my best laptops. You need to get yourself a new nanny or a babysitter or something because I’m not doing this again.” Sehun complained as he worked, making sure each and every camera was disabled. “Cameras are down, now we’re just waiting on Kai.”

“I am not getting a new nanny,” Baekhyun growled, running his hand through his auburn hair in agitation,  the mere mention of the last nanny that he’d recently fired making his blood boil. He should have killed her, really, but he’d decided it was easier to just let her go. She was a nanny, what was the worst she could do? “I’m not getting a babysitter either. We’re doing just fine, thanks.”

“You’re a part of a mafia! How can you actually do your JOB withou-” Sehun started, only to be cut off by their leader.

“We’ll discuss this later. I needed to talk to Baekhyun tonight anyway. Now isn’t the time.” Suho sighed and Baekhyun could actually picture him rubbing his forehead in frustration.  “Kai, how are you doing in there? Can we move in soon?”

The loud, feminine whine that echoed throughout their earpieces was all the answer they needed. There was no way he wouldn’t be able to get what he wanted from her.

“Alright! Time to fuck shit up!” Chen exclaimed happily, quickly followed by a rumbling laugh from Chanyeol and a groan of despair from Suho. Baekhyun simply grinned.

 

Baekhyun was trying extremely hard not to laugh at just how disappointed Chen was at how easy it had been to take control of the front of house. Baekhyun and Suho had slipped around to deal with the cashiers and get them away from the silent alarms while Chen and Chanyeol had dealt with the customers.

“Couldn’t one of you have run? Or tried to fight? Or just screamed? Literally anything at all?” The whine in his voice coupled with the black balaclava that showed nothing but his eyes, which were currently shooting daggers at every single civilian in the room,  made even Suho chuckle.

“Quit being a baby, it’s nice when things actually go to plan for once.” Kai cut in, waltzing up to join you with the dazed-looking manager beneath an arm and a huge grin on his face. She looked like she still hadn’t recovered from her time with Kai but none of them could really blame her. “The vault, love.”

Kai sent her off with a pat on her backside, following along behind her as though he didn’t have a care in the world as she nodded and began to move. Baekhyun and Chanyeol trailing along behind, the latter carrying a heavy looking black duffel bag, the others staying in the front to keep an eye on the hostages that weren’t really even needed.

Not even five minutes later the vault was open, Kai thanking the young woman with a kiss on the cheek and the butt of his pistol to her temple, because while she’d been helpful you could never be too careful. At least he was nice enough to catch her unconscious body and prop her up against the wall opposite the large safe.

Baekhyun’s eyes drifted around the enclosed space as he stepped inside, Chanyeol following closely behind him. There were far too many safety deposit boxes for them to get through them all quickly. There was also a surprising lack of actual money. What kind of a bank was this anyway?

“We’re going to be here all year if we have to pick our way into every one of these,” he said with a long-suffering sigh. It’d be so much easier if they knew exactly which box they were looking for.

“Oh no, I planned for this,” Chanyeol countered with a large grin, dropping the duffel bag onto the floor with a clank and proceeding to open it. He corrected himself when Baekhyun simply raised a brow at him because if there was one thing they all knew, it was that Chanyeol didn’t plan. “Well… Xiumin did.”

Baekhyun simply blinked when Chanyeol produced a couple of industrial hand saws from the bag, their round blades glinting under the lights of the vault. He peered into the bag to see many, many more blades.

“Uh, Chanyeol… Where exactly are we supposed to plug those in?” he asked, brows furrowed, because while Chanyeol was a bit of an idiot sometimes, Xiumin was usually much smarter.

“Oh no, he thought of that too,” he continued, pulling out a couple of extension leads and leaving Baekhyun standing in the middle of the safe feeling a little dumbfounded. He thought he was done being surprised by the people he worked with. Apparently, he’d been wrong about that.

They were one of the most feared crime syndicates in the city and yet here they were, pulling off what had to be one of the worst planned heists in history armed with hand saws and extension cables.

Chanyeol returned quickly, plugging in one of the hand saws and testing that it was actually working, an excited glint coming to his eyes when the blade began to spin.

“Not as good as bombs and fire but it’ll do.”

Baekhyun shook his head with a small smile, plugging in his own saw and beginning to get to work.

* * *

Thirty minutes later they were out, Suho climbing into the front of the nondescript black van parked just around the corner with the rest of them filing into the back, not a bag in sight. The only thing they’d taken with them was a small, velvet bag containing a fortune in diamonds.

“Well, considering how terribly planned that was, it was disappointingly easy,” Chen muttered, returning the wave that D.O sent them all from the driver’s seat before the van began to move.

Baekhyun had to concede that he wasn’t wrong. They’d wanted to move quickly once Kai had stumbled across a little bit of information about a fortune in diamonds being kept in a safety deposit box just outside of the city. Information such as this traveled fast in the criminal underworld and they hadn’t prepared as much as they should have. It was a strangely simple job. Probably because the bank was barely even an actual bank.  

At least, that’s what they were all thinking until the sound of police sirens, much too close for comfort, told them differently.

“Oh no,” Suho groaned from his place in the passenger seat. D.O’s usual blank expression completely transformed as a wide grin spread across his face and the van peeled off, tires squealing.

“Oh yes!” He and Chen exclaimed in tandem, the latter pulling out his 9mm and flicking off the safety. “Finally, a bit of fun!”

Baekhyun simply shook his head as he and the others followed suit, each of them pulling out their pistols as the sirens grew louder behind them. Of course, nothing was ever that easy.

“Did nobody think to bring bigger guns? This would be much easier with bigger guns,” Chanyeol asked as he readied one of his own pistols, making sure his favored Incendiary rounds were in the chamber.

“I didn’t think we’d actually need them,” Suho admitted with a small sigh, sounding a little guilty. “We’ll just have to make do.”

“But the bigger guns are more fun,” Chen whined, actually pouting.

“Chen, shut up and use your pistol,” Suho snapped, pulling out his own weapon and lowering the window beside him. “Can you just do what you’re good at and shoot something? Quietly?”

Chen’s response to that was to simply slide open the side door of the van and begin firing off shots at the police car that was just behind them. The rest of them sprang into action quickly, Kai moving to the back of the van to open the doors so he could make use of his own pistol.

“Sehun, directions and somewhere to lay low would be helpful,” Suho simply stated, maneuvering himself so that he was able to aim out of the window.

“Yeah I’m trying, it’s easier said than done when you’re being attacked by a four-year-old koala,” he grumbled in response, not bothering to mute himself so the sounds of him tapping away at his keyboard and a tiny voice squealing something about cucumbers was heard by everyone.

Baekhyun moved up beside Chen, leaning around him to try to line up a shot at one of the tires as Chanyeol moved down the van to join Kai. Unfortunately, the police had wasted no time in firing back at them and it made trying to take out the vehicles just a little difficult. The sounds of gunshots and sirens were filling the air and yet neither side seemed to be getting anywhere and all of them were gripping onto the sides of the open doors for dear life. D.O drove like an absolute maniac.

“Next right,” Sehun barked, D.O reacting by jerking the steering wheel to take the turn, not slowing down one fucking bit. If it wasn’t for Chen’s quick thinking and the tight hold he got on the collar of Baekhyun’s shirt, the latter would have fallen out of the van head first.

There was a brief sound of a scuffle over the earpieces and Baekhyun frowned slightly just as he fired off a shot at the police car behind them, successfully hitting the tire and sending the car into a spin just before he slipped back inside the van.

“Daddy! Uncle Sehun gave me cucumbers!”

There was another brief scuffle combined with Yah, don’t tell on me you brat!  Baekhyun’s eyes slid shut in annoyance, both at the fact that Sehun had been feeding his daughter cucumbers and the fact that he couldn’t keep her under control for as long as five minutes.

“Oh for fuck’s sake, Sehun tell me where to go!” D.O snapped, trying to get some more speed out of the van although Baekhyun was pretty sure that was a pointless endeavor.

Sehun started spouting off directions quickly and Baekhyun blocked him out, instead choosing to focus on not getting hit by a stray bullet and helping Chen take out the next car.

“Chanyeol!” D.O yelled, glancing back at the man in question before once again focusing on the road and narrowly avoiding an oncoming car.

“What?” Chanyeol snapped back, firing off some rounds that surprisingly did not explode on impact. Baekhyun figured that Kai had probably talked him out of using the explosive ones in case of innocent civilian casualties.

Personally, Baekhyun would have let him use the explosive ones regardless.

“I need you to create a distraction! There’s an alley coming up that I can use but they can’t see us go up there and I kind of need it NOW!”

Chanyeol grinned what, Baekhyun thought, would be one of the scariest grins anyone could ever see. He was pretty scared the first time he saw it, to be perfectly honest. Chanyeol’s relationship with fire and explosives was… special, to say the least.

Chanyeol wasted no time in disposing of the gun he’d been using, throwing it aside carelessly and instead pulling out his favorite, taking aim with a look in his eyes that Baekhyun could only really describe as manic.

“3…2…1…” Chanyeol breathed, the final word passing his lips at the same time that he pulled the trigger. “Boom!”

Chanyeol didn’t miss, the explosive bullet passing straight into the gas tank of the nearest police car. The resulting explosion was very big and very, very loud, the force causing the van to shake slightly as Chanyeol looked on in glee.

Kai left Chanyeol to look back at the huge fire that was the result of that one tiny bullet, Baekhyun moving away from the side door and slumping down next to him as Chen slid the door shut before sitting opposite them.

Even D.O found himself chuckling at the small voice that came through the earpiece as he continued to drive, now at a much less conspicuous speed.

“Daddy, are you coming home soon? Uncle Sehun won’t wear my tiara!”

* * *

Baekhyun was tired, but once the adrenaline from the police chase had died down, that was to be expected. No matter just how tired he was though, nothing could stop the smile that lit up his face when he walked through the door of Junmyeon’s mansion to be greeted by the sound of little feet tapping along the marble floors and the tiny voice squealing “Daddy!”

“Hey princess,” he replied, bending down to scoop her up once she ran close enough. He did not miss Chanyeol’s tall form trying to quietly slip away but luckily his daughter was more focused on him. “Were you a good girl for Uncle Sehun?”

The man in question stepped into the entrance way, pointing a finger before the little girl could reply.

“You owe me a new laptop,” he stated, pointing a finger at Baekhyun to emphasize his point.

“Yeah, yeah just get one and tell me how much I owe you,” he responded, wrinkling his nose at the dark haired girl that was now propped against his hip. “Uncle Sehun is grumpy.”

“Uncle Sehun very grumpy. He wouldn’t wear my tiara!” Soyeon pouted, dramatically waving around the pink fluffy tiara in a small fist. “Daddy wear my tiara?”

“Daddy needs to go and talk to Uncle Jun for a bit, I’ll wear it later okay?” He replied softly, knowing that the chances of a tantrum were incredibly high. When he noticed her bottom lip began to quiver he reached out, quickly grabbing the arm of whoever was closest to him and dragging them over, glancing over briefly to see who he’d wrangled into Tiara Duty. “Uncle Jongdae can wear the tiara, okay?”

She didn’t even answer, too excited to have someone to dress up finally, her small arms reaching out for Jongdae who took her without question while laughing about how he was the prettiest princess when the little girl plopped the tiara on his head.

Baekhyun watched the two for a moment, Jongdae making the small girl giggle as he whispered in her ear, finally looking away when the two entered the extravagant living room. He blinked for a moment, surprised to find that he’d been so caught up in his daughter that he hadn’t noticed the others leaving. Only he and Jongin remained, Jongin having been joined by Yixing who seemed to be scolding him as he began to lead him away. It was only upon closer inspection that Baekhyun actually noticed that the arms of one of his shirt seemed to be covered in blood.

He felt guilt building within himself at the fact that he hadn’t noticed. The only thing that made him feel remotely better was that none of the others had either and it obviously wasn’t that serious if none of them had clocked it.

Baekhyun made his way to Junmyeon’s office which was conveniently located just at the top of the large, glossy marble staircase in the entrance way. Baekhyun simply knocked once before letting himself into the plush room.

Junmyeon looked up from the bar in the corner and held up a bottle of whiskey in question. Baekhyun nodded tiredly, walking over to one of the large leather couches just off to the side of Junmyeon’s large wooden desk and practically flopping down onto it, leaning his head back and closing his eyes with a small sigh.

“It’s getting late, you should probably get Soyeon home soon. I won’t keep you long.”

Baekhyun cracked an eye open to see the man just beside him, holding out the drink to him and he took it gratefully, sipping from it before sitting up properly.

“I’m not doing it Jun. Not after the last one.”

Junmyeon settled himself onto the couch opposite, not the least bit bothered by the glare that Baekhyun was directing at him.

“You need to, Baekhyun. Not every single nanny or babysitter is going to be out to sell information to other crime syndicates.”

“I don’t need to do anything,” Baekhyun practically growled, leaning forward and slamming his glass on the coffee table between them. “We’re doing just fine without one.”

“That’s the point though. You’re not, none of us are,” Junmyeon shot back, rubbing his forehead tiredly. “You all have jobs to do and to put it bluntly, I’m constantly a man down because someone has to stay behind to look after her and it’s not exactly easy to do our jobs with a child underfoot.”

Baekhyun grit his teeth, knowing that Junmyeon was right but there was no way in hell he would admit that. He still wasn’t getting a damned babysitter though.

“Jun, I’m not doing it! Her own mother couldn’t be trusted to look after her! I tried nannies and none of those worked out either. What else do you want me to do?” He demanded, his frustration building due to his exhaustion and the fact that he didn’t know what to do.

“Just… I know a girl, okay? Let me finish!” Junmyeon snapped when Baekhyun went to interrupt him. “She’s a good girl, she’s a university student and I trust her. If I trust her, then you can trust her. Can you just give her a chance? Meet her at least?”

Baekhyun thought about it for a moment. He could always meet her just to keep Junmyeon happy and then tell him that it wasn’t going to work out. He could at least pretend to give it a shot, right?

“Fine. Bring her over tomorrow afternoon so I can meet her and see how she is with Soyeon.” He conceded with a scowl on his face, though he did feel a little better because if anyone would be able to scare the girl off, it’d be his spoilt brat of a daughter.

He pushed himself up from the couch, deciding that he was done with the conversation, though he stopped just as he pulled the door open when Junmyeon spoke again.

“Remember what I said about her being a good girl, Baekhyun. I don’t want you pulling any of your usual shit where she’s concerned.”

“You say that like I fuck anything that moves.” He grated, glare once again fixed on the other man who hadn’t moved from his seat.

“You do. Isn’t that why the last nanny, who you were fucking by the way, was feeding information to a rival mafia so that they could work out a way to get their hands on you for fucking their leader’s ex-girlfriend and ruining their relationship?”

Baekhyun left without a word, though the loud slam of the office door spoke volumes.


	2. Part 2

You tightened your grip on your backpack, sighing tiredly as you stepped out of the campus building where you’d just attended a lecture. You probably shouldn’t have gone to it, given that you desperately needed to find a job and it was one of the classes that you didn’t actually need to physically attend thanks to your stellar grades. Yet, you’d gone anyway in some kind of attempt to convince yourself that not everything in your life was going to shit. **  
**

You nibbled on your lower lip, completely lost in thought as you tried to think of somewhere that you hadn’t already tried. It amazed you how people you knew were able to just walk into a restaurant or a coffee shop and walk out with a job and yet you’d been searching for weeks and had come up with absolutely nothing. It wasn’t as if you had many lectures to attend so surely you should be able to find something? At least, that’s what you’d been telling yourself for the past few weeks.

You were so caught up in trying to think on where to try next, because you kinda needed money to live, that you barely noticed someone waiting for you just off to the side. You let out a small, surprised and yet happy squeal as you rushed over to greet your visitor.

“Junmyeon! What are you doing here?” You asked excitedly as you gave him a small hug. You hadn’t seen him in at least a month and he was your best friend. You’d missed him terribly, but you knew he was busy.

“Hey buttercup. I thought I’d take you to get coffee?” he replied with a small chuckle at the way you wrinkled your nose at the nickname. He knew you hated it but he insisted on calling you that, for some reason that you just did not understand.

“Coffee? You never come and pick me up from college though?” You questioned, narrowing your eyes slightly in confusion. He was much too busy to just come by and decide to take you out. Usually when you saw him, you went to him and not the other way around.

“What? Am I not allowed to take my best friend out for coffee? Is there some kind of law against it that I don’t know about?” He replied with a smile, looping an arm around your shoulder to turn you around and start steering you toward the parking lot.

“You’re up to something.” You concluded, yet followed him any way. You were a poor student and free coffee was free coffee. There was also the bonus of actually seeing your best friend but if you were being honest, you also really wanted the caffeine. Your job hunting could wait for an hour.

“What makes you say that?” He asked as you came up to a his sleek, black Bentley. He pulled open the passenger door, closing it gently after you slid onto the plush leather seat, before walking around and getting in himself.

“Where are we going?” You asked, turning to put your bag in the back before clipping on your seat belt.

“We’ll go to the one I usually go to; it’s not far.” He told you as he pulled out of the parking lot. “So how have you been doing? We haven’t spoken in a while.”

“Yeah, someone’s been too busy being the owner of too many businesses and opening a new nightclub,” you replied, though you were smiling softly. You didn’t mind the fact that his life was so hectic, you just made the most of the time that you had when you could see him. “I’ve been fine. How’s everything with the new nightclub going?”

If there was one thing that Junmyeon knew about you, it was that when you said things were fine, they usually weren’t. You’d usually bombard him with tales of everything that you’d been up to in the time since he’d last seen you, so for you to give a three-word answer and change the subject had him glancing at you with furrowed brows from the driver’s seat. You pointedly looked out of the passenger side window, hoping he wasn’t going to push it.

“Yeah, things with the nightclub are going great,” he responded, obviously deciding that it was best to leave it alone, for now at least. “Your birthday is coming up soon, isn’t it? I’ll throw a small thing for you at the club.”

“You really don’t have to do that, Jun.” You told him softly, feeling quite touched that even though he’d been run off his feet working he’d actually remembered.

“I don’t have to, no,” he said as he pulled into a parking space just outside of a quaint coffee shop. “But I want to.”

You followed him into the coffee shop, doing as he asked and going to find a seat while he got your drinks. He knew what you liked to drink from the times you’d visited him at various different businesses he owned and he mistook your coffee for his.  You found a seat that was out of the way, up toward the back of the cafe and sat down to wait.

There weren’t actually many people present in the coffee shop so you were a little surprised when a blonde haired guy with cheekbones you were pretty sure you would actually kill for sat down a couple of tables away from you. Your attention was pulled away when Junmyeon returned, placing a simple cup of black coffee in front of you and sitting opposite you.

“So,” he murmured quietly, raising a brow at you over his vanilla latte before continuing. “Are you actually going to tell me what’s going on with you? I know you well enough to know that everything isn’t fine.”

You glared at him over your own mug, not happy that he wasn’t letting it go. But then again, this was Junmyeon and he never let things like this go. He always wanted to help and it was one of the things that you liked about him. You stared down at the dark liquid in the mug before you, fiddling with the handle as you bit on your bottom lip before letting out a small sigh.

“My parents cut me off. They’ve pretty much disowned me, to be honest,” you almost whispered, swallowing around the lump that was forming in your throat. “I’ve been looking for a job but I can’t find anything and I don’t have much money left either.”

“What? Why would they do that?” He inquired, a concerned glint in his eyes and a frown on his face, the coffee in front of him now forgotten as he focused on you.

“Multiple reasons, I guess,” you shrugged, your eyes beginning to sting. Even if you and your family had never really seen eye to eye, it still hurt to lose them. “I moved away for college and refused to major in business. I dated when they expressly forbade me from doing so. I guess the last straw was not even turning up to meet the man they were planning on marrying me off to and when they phoned me to berate me for it, I told them that it’d happen over my dead body.”

“Why didn’t you just meet him?” Junmyeon queried, looking a little confused. “You didn’t have to marry him but you could have met him?”

“You know it wouldn’t have ended there Jun,” you told him, the frustration you were feeling at the situation showing in your tone. “My parents want to control my life and everything in it. I want to live my life the way that I want to. I’m their daughter, not their puppet.”

Junmyeon stood up with a small sigh just as the first tear fell, walking around to your side of the table and pulling you up before sitting down on your chair and pulling you down to sit on his lap. The way that he was rubbing small, comforting circles over your back and was murmuring soothing words that just seemed to make you cry harder.

He didn’t speak properly until a little while later when you were sniffling quietly as the waterworks began to come to a stop.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” he murmured gently, hand still rubbing against your back. “You know that I would have helped you, right?”

“I didn’t want to bother you and I can’t run to you every time something goes wrong for me,” you replied, your voice slightly hoarse from all the crying, wiping your eyes with the napkin he’d handed you earlier. You moved off of his lap, Junmyeon taking that as his sign to return to his side of the table.

“You still should have told me,” he told you, pursing his lips a little at how stubborn you could be when it came to your independence. “You still haven’t found a job?”

“No,” you sighed, taking a sip of your coffee that had been forgotten. “I’ve tried so many places but they all say they’re not looking for anyone at the moment. Why, do you have something for me? Maybe at that swanky new nightclub of yours?”

“Not me. A friend of mine does though,” he shrugged, smiling at the way your eyes widened. He knew you hadn’t been serious when you’d asked him. “He’s a single parent and he needs a babysitter.”

You grimaced slightly at the word ‘babysitter’. You liked kids, sure, but you’d never really spent much time around them. You were pretty sure you’d have no idea what to do with a child.

“How old are we talking here?” you asked him. Maybe an older child wouldn’t be so bad right? You could probably handle an 8-year-old.

“She’s four,” he told you with a small grin, knowing exactly what you were thinking. “She’s also a bit of a handful. Very spoiled and a bit of a brat but she’ll be fine once you learn how to handle her. A bit like her dad really.”

You cringed slightly, thinking that this sounded like a very, very bad idea. But it was the first job offer of any kind you’d had since you started looking and you weren’t kidding about running out of money. If you didn’t find something soon you’d probably have to sell a kidney.

“If it makes it better, her father is on call 24/7 and he knows that his daughter can be very demanding, so he pays extremely well. I think he paid his last nanny at least 3 times the usual rate.”

That pretty much sold it for you. You needed a job and even if the man did work strange hours you were sure you’d be able to keep your grades up. It was at least worth a try for that amount of money and you were pretty sure it couldn’t go that badly. You were quite sure you wouldn’t accidentally kill the kid, at least.

“I can at least meet them and see how we get on, I guess,” you told him, still feeling a little hesitant. “Can you arrange it?”

Junmyeon shifted in his seat, now looking a little uncomfortable. You narrowed your eyes at him.

“You see, I may have already told him I had the perfect person for the job and you’re supposed to meet him this afternoon?” he said, finishing his statement on a questioning note.

“Really, Jun? Before even asking me?” You groaned, though you weren’t completely surprised. Junmyeon tended to get whatever he wanted and if he wanted you to babysit his friend’s daughter, you would probably end up babysitting her for the next ten years. “Fine. Let’s go meet them then?”

 

* * *

You were a little taken aback when you entered the apartment building, not really expecting for it to be one of the wealthiest buildings in the city. You were even more surprised when you entered the lift, complete with gold accents and plush carpeting, only for Junmyeon to pull out a keycard and insert it into the slot under the dashboard before hitting the button for the penthouse.

“What did you say he does for a living?” You asked, still a little shell-shocked.

“I didn’t. But he’s actually my head of security as well as one of my personal guards. He handles the security across all of my businesses.” Junmyeon told you simply.

“Oh…” You weren’t entirely sure how to take that.

You followed Junmyeon out of the lift when the doors slid open, the short yet elegant hallway screaming money. Even though you’d grown up comfortably and never had to want for anything, your own family being fairly well off, you definitely felt as though you didn’t belong here. This was in a whole other league to what you were accustomed to.

You stood beside him as he knocked on the large wooden door, bouncing nervously on the balls of your feet until the man beside you placed a comforting hand on your shoulder. You heard a muffled squeal followed by the sound of a man’s laughter just before the door was pulled open and you came face to face with one of the most beautiful men you’d ever laid eyes on carrying a very pretty little girl.

You were staring at him and you knew it, yet you couldn’t seem to get yourself to stop, though he was doing the same to you so you didn’t feel too bad about it. His dark red hair was a little mussed, probably from playing around with his daughter for the morning. You took in his dark eyes and his pink lips that of course he just happened to sink his teeth into just as you looked at them. You felt your cheeks heating and you willed them to stop because why were you even blushing? You had no reason to be blushing! He was dressed in a simple black tee and a tight pair of jeans that hugged his legs perfectly and oh god you needed to stop looking at him.

“Buttercup, this is Baekhyun and this little princess right here is Soyeon,” Junmyeon said and you pulled your gaze away from the man that was still watching you with a smirk on his face. He’d definitely noticed the redness in your cheeks.

“Buttercup?” Baekhyun asked, quirking a brow and looking a little amused.

“Junmyeon, please stop calling me that,” you groaned as your eyes fell on the tiny girl in Baekhyun’s arms. She was a petite little thing who looked quite a bit like her father. Her long black hair was down around her shoulders, a slight wave to it and her lovely eyes were fixed on you. She narrowed them at you when you looked at her and you actually gulped. She did not look approachable. At all.

“I’ve called you that for years and I’m not about to stop anytime soon.”

You groaned quietly at his response and told them your name as Baekhyun moved aside to let you and Junmyeon into his apartment, if it could really be called that. The place was huge and you found yourself wondering how someone whose line of work was in security could even afford a place like this. Either he was very, very good at his job or he had some other form of income. Maybe some very rich parents.

Soyeon was kicking her legs in a demand to be put down, Baekhyun complying to her demands before his eyes started roaming over your body once again. You hated how affected you were by it and at just how shameless he was. He didn’t seem to care at all that Junmyeon was there next to you and he had definitely noticed.

“Baekhyun,” he said in warning. “Can I talk to you for a moment?”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes, knowing exactly what Junmyeon wanted to talk to him about. You were pretty sure you had a good idea on how that conversation was going to go yourself, given Junmyeon’s protective big brother attitude towards you and the way Baekhyun had been looking at you from the moment he’d set eyes on you.

“Soyeon, why don’t you show Buttercup what you were making before her and Uncle Jun got here?” he asked the girl, who was still glaring at you. You shot him a scathing look at his use of the nickname Junmyeon used for you. You were quite sure he’d picked up on the fact that you hated it. You were even more certain of it when he just grinned at you. So, it was gonna be like that, huh?

“Buttercup is a silly name,” Soyeon said to you as Junmyeon and Baekhyun walked away, the latter’s loud snort at his daughter’s bluntness causing you to shoot daggers into the back of his head.

You sighed with a small grimace as you looked at her. “I know, it’s terrible isn’t it?”

The girl nodded emphatically and you quirked a small smile. She was cute.

“What were daddy and you doing before I got here? Do you want to show me?”

The little girl’s eyes lit up as she rushed over, grabbing your hand in her small one and dragging you into the large living room.

“You can help! Daddy was no good. Daddy is very bad at making things!” she exclaimed excitedly, dragging you over to the disaster area on the large coffee table. It was a complete mess of all kinds of craft materials that a four-year-old girl would love. There were feathers, sequins, fluffy pompoms, glitter and basically anything else you could imagine.

“Okay, uh, what are we making?” you asked her, sitting down on the floor between the ridiculously expensive leather couch and the table with your legs crossed.

“Tiara! Princesses need a tiara!” she exclaimed, sitting down next to you and reaching for the cardboard. You drew your lower lip between your teeth as you contemplated. You probably wouldn’t be able to manage a decent looking tiara but maybe a crown would do?

“Princesses also wear very pretty crowns! How would you like a crown, Soyeon?”

She pursed her lips as she contemplated, finally conceding with a small nod, though apparently, she had a condition for you to agree to.

“Pink one?”

You laughed reaching for the long strips of card so that you could measure her crown.

“Sure, if pink is what you want then pink is what you will get!”

A little while later you were almost finished, Soyeon chattering along happily beside you. You weren’t entirely sure why you’d been so intimidated by her just a little while before, she was absolutely adorable if a little demanding.

Every addition to the crown had to be placed in exactly the right spot or it wouldn’t be good enough, though you hadn’t minded having to move things by a single millimeter to keep her happy. You glued the final fake gemstone into place, making sure that it was positioned just right, before smiling happily.

“All done, Soyeon!”

The little girl clapped happily beside you and you stood up, taking a moment to admire the little crown that was covered in feathers and pompoms and a mountain of sequins and gemstones, When you bent down to pick it up, you froze for a second when you felt something behind you. It took you a moment to realise that something was actually a someone and you were rubbing your ass up against them. You grabbed the small crown before quickly straightening up and clearing your throat.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you come up behind me.” You mumbled, the flash of heat climbing up your neck to your cheeks rapidly. Before you could turn around, you felt a chest press up against your back.

“It’s fine, you have a very nice ass. Looks great in those jeans.” Baekhyun whispered, his hot breath fanning against your ear before you moved away from him quickly. Your face was burning because god, his body against yours felt nice and his voice breathing into your ear was too much to handle.

“Baekhyun, what did we literally just talk about?” Junmyeon demanded and you jumped because you hadn’t even noticed him enter the room.

“Me? I didn’t do anything!” Baekhyun replied and you glared at him because he most certainly had done something and while you wanted to point that out, you also really needed this job, so you kept quiet.

“Here, Soyeon,” You murmured quietly, willing the redness in your cheeks to disappear as you crouched down in front of the girl who had been surprisingly patient and thankfully had been so caught up in throwing glitter everywhere she hadn’t seen anything. At least you hoped she hadn’t. You couldn’t help but shoot Baekhyun a glare because really?

“Beautiful!” You chirped happily as you placed the bedazzled crown on to her head.

“Daddy I’m beautiful!” Soyeon exclaimed excitedly as she stood up and rushed over to him. Baekhyun didn’t seem bothered in the slightest that she looked like a glitter bomb had gone off in her face and she was clinging to his leg.

“The most beautiful princess.” He told her with a loving smile and you felt your own lips twitch a little. It was clear that he loved his little girl a lot.

Junmyeon’s phone rang and he pulled it out of his pocket, frowning at it before he answered.

“Tao?”

You turned back to the coffee table, wondering how the hell you were going to clear up all this glitter. It was literally covering everything. You were pretty sure none of the fluffy craft supplies were going to be salvageable, to be honest.

“Baekhyun, we have a problem that we need to deal with,” Junmyeon said, causing you and Baekhyun, who had just sat down on the couch, to look over.

“What kind of a problem?”

“One that means that we need to go and deal with it,” Junmyeon said pointedly and Baekhyun sighed.

“What about Soyeon? I can’t bring her, can I?”

You contemplated for a moment before you cleared your throat and speaking up. You were supposed to be here for a babysitting job after all. “I can do it? I had no plans for the rest of the day anyway.”

Baekhyun scowled at you, clearly wanting to decline your offer, though he seemed to change his mind about that when Soyeon squealed happily and climbed off of his lap to throw herself at you. She wrapped her little arms around your legs, looking up at you with big, hopeful eyes.

“Can we watch a movie?”

Baekhyun sighed before speaking, his dark eyes fixed on you, though you thought you could see a hint of worry mixed with something that almost seemed protective in their depths.

“Fine. If you need anything, help yourself.”

He stood up, not even glancing back as he walked out of the living room. He really didn’t seem pleased but you couldn’t work out why. You’d only offered to do the one thing that you were here for.

Junmyeon smiled at you apologetically, knowing that it hadn’t been your intention to actually stay alone with the girl when you’d come today. “I’m sorry, this shouldn’t take too long!”

And with that, he was gone and you were left alone with a four-year-old girl that you’d only met an hour or so before. You looked down at her, where she was now grinning up at you with her arms still holding you hostage.

“So, what do you want to watch?”

 

* * *

Baekhyun wasn’t happy and he didn’t even try to hide it. Even Junmyeon kept quiet on the way back to his mansion, knowing exactly what the issue was and knowing better than to try to talk to him. It said a lot that Baekhyun was so caught up in his own mind that he hadn’t even asked what the problem was when they were alone.

Baekhyun slammed the car door shut a little too harshly once he got out, not even waiting for Junmyeon before climbing the steps and throwing open the front door. Seeing the way that Soyeon had warmed up to you so quickly and just how good you were with her just made him irrationally angry. It brought up feelings and memories that he’d much rather forget and it also brought the resentment he felt toward Soyeon’s mother rushing to the forefront.

There was an innocence and naivety that you projected and everything within himself screamed at him not to trust it. It was okay for him to be attracted to you and that, he definitely was. But it wasn’t okay for him to fall into your trap. He wasn’t stupid enough to believe that the bright smiles and the naivety in your eyes were real. Everything about you was a facade and you’d confirmed it for him when you’d just allowed him to touch you the way that he had.

He left the door open, marching off down the hallway on the ground floor to the room that Sehun tended to use when he was at the mansion instead of his own apartment. He didn’t bother to knock before walking in and his tone of voice wasn’t the friendliest.

“What’s the problem?”

“Is Junmyeon here?” Was Sehun’s response, the tall black haired man not even turning away from his computer screen to look at him as he asked.

“I’m right here,” Junmyeon said as he entered. “Do we have time to do anything?”

“Nope,” he said simply, finally turning away from the computer to face you. “The whole warehouse just went up in flames.”

“This is the second one,” Baekhyun growled, his anger growing at that bit of information. “What is Tao even doing? How is he getting this information so late?”

“He’s doing the best he can,” Junmyeon snapped at him, his own annoyance at both Baekhyun’s attitude and the situation building. “He’s also given us enough in plenty of time, don’t forget that.”

“Whatever,” Baekhyun grunted, turning on his heel to leave. “So I came here for no reason? I can go now?”

It wasn’t really a question, it was pretty clear that he was planning on leaving regardless though he stopped just outside the door when Sehun called out to him.

“Can you give me a second and I’ll drive you back? You came with Junmyeon, right? You’ll need a lift.”

Baekhyun nodded before he walked off back down the hallway. He’d completely forgotten about that. He decided to just wait for Sehun in the entrance hall, not really wanting to bump into anyone else in his current mood.

Baekhyun actually didn’t have that long to wait before Sehun came to meet him, though he was surprised to see Chanyeol tagging along. So much for not bumping into anyone else. Baekhyun simply looked at his giant friend and raised a brow in question.

“I’m coming too,” Chanyeol told him with a small shrug and Baekhyun simply turned on his heel and walked out of the front door.

 

* * *

Given that Soyeon had asked to watch a movie, you’d figured that things would be pretty chill with just the two of you. You’d been wrong. Very wrong.

Once you’d sat her down to watch Beauty And The Beast, you’d set to clearing up the mess you’d both made, which actually hadn’t taken as long as you’d thought it would. By the time you were done, Soyeon was already fidgety and bouncing around on her seat, chattering away and not paying one bit of attention to the film.

So, you’d asked her what else she wanted to do, figuring out that it wouldn’t hurt to let her pick something. You’d been wrong about that too. It had hurt. A lot.

If there was one thing that you’d concluded from all of this, it was that you were never, ever letting a four-year-old girl get their hands on your hair again. It was one of the most painful experiences that you’d ever had and it was NOT worth it just to keep her happy.

She’d wanted to play dress up but the problem had been that she’d also wanted for you to dress up with her, something that wasn’t exactly possible and so instead you’d offered to let her do your hair. She’d dressed up in her favorite Disney princess costume, complete with her favorite tiara and even a fairy wand for some reason, but what the hell she was four if she wanted a fairy wand, she’d get the fairy wand. Then, she’d forced you to sit down in the middle of the living room while she set to work. You should not have sat down. You realized that now.

You’d been whacked on the head far too many times and you were sure you were going to have a lump right on the crown of your head. You were also sure you’d lost at least half of your hair. You also weren’t entirely sure how you were going to untangle the hair ties that seemed perfectly affixed to the once perfectly straight strands.

You actually found yourself feeling extremely relieved when you heard the front door open and Soyeon shot to her feet, bolting toward the sound while waving her fairy wand around rather viciously.

You followed behind her a little more slowly, trying to untangle your hair and get the hair ties out. You must look like an absolute disaster. You came to a halt when your eyes fell on two unfamiliar faces. One bent down to Soyeon’s level, stretching out his arms for a hug only to be met with a fairy wand to the face. That had to hurt.

The big man pouted, looking genuinely sad and it was actually kind of cute. The other guy that you didn’t recognize was laughing and Baekhyun was looking down at his daughter in exasperation.

“Soyeon, be nice to Uncle Chanyeol.”

The man that Soyeon had hit with her wand held out his arms once again, looking a little hopeful. Soyeon was having none of it, however.

“No!” She shouted, smacking him with her fairy wand once again and he decided it was best to give up, standing up with the pout present on his face once again.

“Why does she hate me? What did I do?” He whined, rubbing his cheek.

Baekhyun simply shrugged, he’d given up trying to work out why Soyeon disliked him so much years ago.

The other man was still laughing and Soyeon finally noticed him, her eyes lighting up as she threw herself at him.

“Uncle Sehun!” She crowed happily as he scooped her up giving the other man such a smug look it was almost laughable.

“Hey princess, have you been a good girl?”

“Well, obviously not she just hit me! Twice!” Chanyeol grumbled and Sehun pointedly ignored him.

“I’ve been very good!” she replied, waving her wand around and almost hitting Sehun in the face, but he caught it just in time. She turned in his arms to look at you, tilting her head cutely. “I’ve been good?”

“Of course you have! You’ve been really well behaved!” You responded with a small smile. Maybe your scalp would believe that one day.

All eyes turned to you when you spoke and you didn’t fail to notice the way that Baekhyun was glaring at you. Maybe you shouldn’t have said anything. You swallowed nervously, turning to the two strangers and introducing yourself quietly. They’d just finished greeting you when Baekhyun spoke up.

“Thanks. You can go now.”

The hostility in his voice had you looking at him and you froze when your eyes met his. He was totally different from how he’d been when you’d met him earlier and you weren’t entirely sure what to do. He actually scared you at the moment and you figured you should do what he said and leave. You were just about to go and get your backpack and beat a hasty retreat when Sehun stopped you.

“Nope, you stay.” He said, turning and bending down to pick up a pair of shoes for Soyeon from the rack beside the door. “We’re taking Soyeon for ice cream. You two need to get to know each other a little better.”

Baekhyun looked like he was about to spit fire when Chanyeol continued.

“We’re under strict orders from Junmyeon to leave you two alone for a bit. You should get to know her better if she’s going to be looking after Soyeon from now on. Maybe talk for a bit and then take her home.” He said as he and Sehun turned to the door. He stopped for a moment before leaving. “Oh and Junmyeon said that if you do anything stupid you won’t like the consequences, bye!”

With that, they were gone and you were left alone with Baekhyun who was glaring at you as though you were the personification of all things evil in the world. You found yourself shrinking under his unwavering stare.

“You can go.” He gritted out, his jaw clenched. He was angry, like really angry and for the life of you, you couldn’t figure out why.

“But-”

“Why are you even here?” He demanded and your brows knit together in confusion.

“What are you talking about?” You asked him. You were genuinely baffled.

“I think it was a pretty simple question,” He grated out, stalking towards you as you backed away from him, coming up short when your back hit the wall. Baekhyun didn’t stop, however, continuing until he was uncomfortably close to you and glaring down at you. “Why are you here? What is it that you want? What exactly is it that you’re hoping to gain from being around me and my daughter?”

You started to shake slightly at the sheer aggression that was radiating from him, genuinely scared. Your thoughts were a mess, you had no idea what you’d done wrong, why he was so angry at you.

“Junmyeon told me that you needed a babysitter and I needed a job,” You answered him honestly, your voice leaving you in a quiet, shaky whisper. You flinched when he barked out a laugh.

“You really expect me to believe that?” He demanded, his angry voice cracking through the space between you like a whip and you couldn’t control yourself when you flinched again. You felt as though you were about to cry, using every little bit of self-control that you had to keep the tears at bay because you just didn’t understand. “If there’s one thing that I’ve learned over the years it’s that everyone lies, everyone is out to get something, everyone has an agenda. So what is it? Someone wants to use you to get close to me? What would you do to achieve that, hmm? Would you be willing to fuck me to do it? I bet you would, wouldn’t you?”

Your breaths were coming in short little pants as you tried to keep your emotions under control, but the dam broke after the next words that he spat at you.

“What would your parents say if they knew that their sweet, innocent little girl was such a whore, hmm?”

Your hand shot out, a loud crack echoing through the large hallway as it collided with his cheek and the tears began to fall. You didn’t say anything, crying too much to be able to get any words out, although you were sure you’d think of a lot to say later. You were hurt, you were angry and you weren’t thinking straight when you pushed him away and ran straight out of the apartment.

It was only once you were outside that you realized you were on the other side of the city from where you lived and that you’d left your backpack inside, but you sure as hell weren’t going back in for it. Hopefully, he’d give it to Junmyeon and you’d get it back sooner rather than later.


	3. Part 3

Baekhyun walked into Junmyeon’s latest night club through the back door, the backpack you’d left behind at his place in one hand and Soyeon’s smaller one in the other. He usually wouldn’t want to bring her here even if the place was closed, but he had a feeling you wouldn’t be going back for your bag any time soon and you probably needed it. Not that he actually cared much. **  
**

At least that’s what he’d been telling himself since the night before. It had caught him completely by surprise when you’d actually slapped him, something that no one had ever done before. People were usually smart enough to be scared of him and the only people stupid enough to actually lay a finger on him were the ones that were trying to kill him. It also shocked him that he hadn’t seen it coming, what with his ‘profession’ and all.

When he walked into the main club, he was a little surprised to see Minseok by the bar. Soyeon noticed the lights flashing over the dance floor and took off to play as the DJ continued his work, checking to make sure everything was good to go for the opening. He walked over to Minseok, the other man looking up from the bar and giving him a small greeting.

“What are you doing here?” Baekhyun questioned, not having expected to see the other man.  Junmyeon was spending much of his time at the new club to make sure that everything was running smoothly and that everyone was doing their jobs correctly and most of Kai’s time went to making sure the girls that worked the top floor were settling in. Minseok had guys to deal through the clubs so as far as he knew, the man didn’t have a reason to be here.

“There are some special guests coming tonight, I was asked to bring some things to make sure they have a good night. I was just waiting for Jongin before I go up,” He answered with a small shrug. “What are you doing here? You’re not supposed to be with Jun today, are you?”  

Baekhyun let out a small hum at what Minseok had told him, not really surprised that his services had been requested if the guests were visiting the top floor. Not many people knew about the strip club that was up there, to most people Electric Kiss was just a normal night club. Only those with a serious amount of cash and who socialized in the right circles would be able to get up there.

“I’m dropping this off for Junmyeon,” he answered, raising the backpack in his hand. “The new babysitter didn’t last long and she left this behind.”

“What do you mean she didn’t last long? Isn’t she Junmyeon’s friend? I thought she’d stick around,”  the other man asked, brows furrowed a little in confusion.

“I meant what I said. She didn’t last long.”

“What did you do?” Minseok asked with a sigh.

“What makes you think I did anything?” Baekhyun asked, quirking a brow at him though the smirk that pulled at his lips when he asked the question probably gave him away.

“Junmyeon is going to skin you alive if you upset his friend, you know that right?”

When Baekhyun didn’t say anything, Minseok pushed himself away from the bar, turning to walk over to Soyeon who was still playing with the lights, calling over his shoulder. “I’ll keep an eye on Soyeon while you’re up there. Don’t want her to witness the death of her daddy, do we?”

Baekhyun let out a small snort as he left the club area, heading down the hallways to find the stairs that would take him up to Junmyeon’s office. He was quite sure he’d be able to handle Junmyeon, he was decent at getting himself out of sticky situations, after all. He could always just not tell him everything.

He refused to feel guilty for the way that he’d treated her and if Junmyeon was stupid enough to fall for whatever tricks she was playing, that was his problem. Granted, he had felt a tiny shred of guilt the night before, when she’d slapped him and he’d seen the look in her eyes, a look that told him just how hurt she was by his actions and his words. A look that for just a moment had told him that she was genuine and was speaking the truth. But he’d pushed that feeling away pretty damned quickly, because he’d meant what he said to her. Everyone wanted something. Everyone was out to get something and she wasn’t any different.

He knocked once when he reached the office, pushing the door open only once Junmyeon had called out that it was okay to enter. He was finicky like that. It was fine to march right on in at home but he had a thing about people doing that outside of the mansion.

“What are you doing here?”

Baekhyun turned at the sound of Junmyeon’s question, pouting before he answered.

“Wow, Jun, what a nice greeting for your favorite bodyguard.”

“Favorite?” Junmyeon questioned simply, raising a brow at him from where he was sat behind his desk.

“Yeah, we all know that position is mine,” Jongdae piped up from where he was sat opposite the other man, a smug grin on his face. Junmyeon didn’t correct him.

“Of course the crazy one would be his favorite,” Baekhyun muttered and Jongdae scowled at him. Baekhyun continued before he could retort. “Anyway, your little buttercup left her bag at mine and I thought you might want to give it back to her.”

Junmyeon looked at him for a moment, his lips pursed as he processed what Baekhyun had just said before finally speaking in a low, dangerous tone.

“Why did she leave without her bag, Baekhyun?”

Baekhyun simply shrugged a shoulder, his tone of voice decidedly uncaring when he answered. “Why the hell would I know?”

“She’s not just going to leave without her bag, what did you do?” Junmyeon practically growled at him, holding out a hand for Baekhyun to give him the backpack.

“Oh, this is gonna be good,” Jongdae said quietly, eyes darting back and forth between the two as though he were watching a very intense tennis match.

“You, shut up,” Junmyeon shot at him and Jongdae held his hands up in surrender, though the smile on his face didn’t falter one bit.

Baekhyun handed him the bag, his annoyance showing in his voice when he answered. “I don’t know why she left it, what am I, a mind reader?”

“You know I can just ask her if you won’t tell me,” Junmyeon stated bluntly, his eyes narrowed as he watched him.

Baekhyun simply clicked his tongue, turning around to leave. “Do that then.”

“Byun Baekhyun, don’t you dare walk aw-” Junmyeon shouted as he left the room, the slam of the door cutting him off.

//

You were tired and you were frustrated. After walking for over an hour, you’d finally made it home the night before, too upset and agitated to actually sleep despite how exhausted you’d felt. Stewing in your anger and hurt, you’d shut yourself away in your tiny apartment that probably wasn’t going to be yours much longer, now that you had to go job hunting again.

It wasn’t until early afternoon that you realized you needed your bag back sooner rather than later. Your notes, your money, your bus pass: everything was in that bag and you had a lecture to attend in the morning.

You groaned, rolling around on your bed and flailing angrily because what the hell were you going to do? You sure as hell were not going to get it yourself and you didn’t want to bother Junmyeon. You’d meant it when you’d told him that you didn’t want to go running to him over every little problem in your life. After all, you were a responsible adult; you should be able to take care of yourself.

You still didn’t know what it was exactly that you’d done wrong and you’d spent a lot of the night thinking about it. You’d also come to the conclusion that there was no way you were going back there because the guy had scared the hell out of you and said some of the most hurtful things that you’d ever had directed your way. He’d even managed to outdo your parents on the hateful comments scale and you hadn’t even done anything to the guy.

You frowned when you heard a knock at your front door, wanting to be able to wallow in self-pity in peace for just a little longer. You weren’t sure who it was, the one person that usually visited you at home should be in a lecture. You rolled yourself off of your bed, pulling your messy hair up into a bun and grimacing at the sweats and the oversized sweater you were wearing. You were a mess, but whoever had decided to come knocking would have to deal with it.

You pulled open the door, blinking in confusion when you came face to face with Junmyeon, not having expected him to be on the other side at all. If he was coming to visit he’d usually let you know beforehand.

“Junmyeon?”

He smiled at you as you stepped aside to let him in and then you noticed your backpack in his right hand.

“Oh my god, you lifesaver!” You exclaimed happily, reaching out for the bag which he handed over to you. “I needed that for tomorrow, it has my notes.”

“Happy to help, buttercup,” He told you as he followed you into your tiny living room where you dropped your bag next to your small couch. “Why did you leave it at Baekhyun’s though?”

You scowled at him as he made himself comfortable on the sofa before you plonked yourself down next to him.

“Your friend is a dick.”

Junmyeon grimaced. “Yeah, I know. What did he do?”

You felt the anger and the hurt that you’d been feeling since you’d left Baekhyun’s apartment the night before rushing back into you at the question.

“What did he do?” You snapped at him with a glare, Junmyeon looking a little startled at the way you were trying to burn him alive with your eyes. “He scared the hell out of me, called me a whore and spewed some of the most hateful shit at me. He even brought up my parents! Plus, all of that was after flirting with me! I don’t even know what I did to deserve something like that!”

“I’m sorry about that,” Junmyeon said with a small sigh. His apology did nothing for you, he wasn’t the one that should be apologizing. “I’ll deal with him.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter because I’m not going back,” you told him bluntly. “Why would you send me to work for someone like that in the first place?”

“I sent you because he really does need a babysitter for Soyeon,” he told you, sighing again. “He has his issues, especially when it comes to trusting people. I thought that maybe if it was you, a very good friend of mine, he might be okay with it.”

“Well, you thought wrong, didn’t you?” You grunted in response.

“I guess so,” he replied, directing an apologetic look your way. “He just isn’t the best at handling his emotions and he doesn’t trust women, specifically.”

“That doesn’t excuse his behavior, Jun.” You pointed out to him, though you had to admit that you were a little curious by what he meant. Why women in particular?

“Look, I’m going to tell you a few things about Baekhyun and don’t you dare breathe a word of this to anyone,” he told you and you just blinked at him, waiting for him to continue. Who exactly would you tell, the man himself? Not likely.  “His experiences with women haven’t been the best. He met Soyeon’s mother quite young, while he was still in college, actually. When he fell for her, he fell hard and he was completely devoted to her. I wish I could say the same for her, but I’d be lying about that.”

You stayed quiet, listening to him speak. You were feeling a little uneasy about what he was telling you, but you didn’t want to stop him if it was something he felt that you should know.

“It was thanks to me that they met in the first place, actually. Sometimes I think it would have been better for him if that hadn’t happened,” he said with a small huff. “But anyway, he really did love her and I think in her own way she did love him too. The problem was that she wasn’t happy with her life as a whole and she wanted to leave it, to start afresh. Baekhyun couldn’t give that to her. Then, she fell pregnant with Soyeon.”

You swallowed uncomfortably, shifting in your seat a little. You weren’t sure that you liked the way that this story was going. You were actually starting to feel a little bit of sympathy for the man that you were talking about and you didn’t quite know how to feel about that, considering the things that had happened between the both of you.

“She stuck around until she gave birth and then she just up and left. She left him with a baby that was a couple of days old and a note, telling him that she couldn’t stay and that this wasn’t the life that she wanted for herself and left with another guy. None of us have seen nor heard from her since.”

You were pretty sure you felt your heart crack just a little at that. No matter how much of a dick he was now, nobody deserves something like that.

“Why are you telling me all of this?” You asked him quietly, a little confused as to why he was sharing all of this with you. It wasn’t as if you needed to know, you’d already decided that you weren’t going back and you were sure he didn’t want you there either.

“I’m telling you to help you understand a little better,” he told you, a pleading look in his eyes that told you he wanted you to at least try to understand the man in question. “Her doing that to him destroyed him and the women that he’s met and associated with since have just cemented the fact for him that women can’t be trusted. They’d lie to him, use him and sneak around. Especially to try and get closer to me. That’s something that his last nanny did and why I thought that maybe having someone that I trusted around could be good for him.”

“I still don’t get why you’re telling me this. It doesn’t really matter now, does it?”

“I just want you to think about giving the job another go.” He said and you were already shaking your head before he was finished. You felt for the guy, but that didn’t mean that you were willing to put up with being treated that way.

“No, Jun. This doesn’t excuse the way that he treated me or the things that he said to me.”

“I’m not trying to make excuses for him and believe me when I say that I’ll be talking to him,” Junmyeon replied and you let out a quiet sigh. “I still think that you could be good for him, as well as Soyeon. Please, at least think about it?”

“What makes you so sure that I’d be good for them? I’m just a poor college student, Jun!”

“No, you’re not,” he told you, shaking his head as if to reinforce his statement. “You’re completely different to the girls he’s usually around, all of his previous nannies and even Soyeon’s mother. You’re a good person, you’re a genuine person and that’s something that he needs around him and something that he most certainly needs around Soyeon.”

You took a moment to think over what he was saying. It was nice that he thought so well of you, even though you didn’t really agree with him. You weren’t anything special, to be perfectly honest. You actually did feel bad for Baekhyun and especially for Soyeon. The little girl had been abandoned by her mother as soon as she’d been born and that was something that actually made your heart ache. You closed your eyes, taking a deep breath before you answered him.

“Fine, I’ll give it another try,” you replied, continuing on with your one condition before he could get too excited. “But only if he comes and tells me that he wants me for the job himself.”

You watched Junmyeon’s happy countenance deflate a little. You both knew that wouldn’t be an easy feat for him to achieve.

//

“Byun Baekhyun!”

Both the man himself and Chanyeol, who was sat beside him at the bar in Electric Kiss, jumped a few feet into the air when Junmyeon’s extremely loud and very angry voice echoed throughout the empty club.

“What did you do?” Chanyeol demanded, actually looking a little scared himself. It was rare to see Suho this angry. Or in this case, hear him this angry.

Baekhyun laid eyes on the irate man and only had a brief moment to consider the fact that maybe he wouldn’t be able to talk himself out of this one before Junmyeon’s fist collided with his jaw and sent him sprawling onto the floor.

Baekhyun groaned and lay there blinking up at the ceiling for a moment, because if there was one thing Junmyeon could do it was throw a punch. The guy hit like a fucking pro boxer. He brought a hand up to rub at his jaw, pretty sure that would leave a nasty bruise. He was also quite shocked. This was the second time in two days he’d been hit and he hadn’t seen either one of them coming.

“Feel better now?” He asked, glaring at Chanyeol who had burst out laughing at seeing his best friend get sucker punched. “Stop laughing, asshole. Help me up.”

“No, I don’t,” Junmyeon snapped back at him as Chanyeol got up and reached out to grab him and pull him up, though he didn’t stop laughing. “You and I are going to have a talk, get your ass up into my office.”

“Whatever you say, mom,” Baekhyun mumbled at Junmyeon’s retreating form with an eye roll for good measure.

“I heard that, you fucker!” Was shouted back at him accompanied by the sound of a slamming door that had even Chanyeol flinching slightly.

“You need to be careful and stop winding him up,” Chanyeol told him quietly, his humor at the situation disappearing as it sank in for them just how pissed Junmyeon was. Baekhyun sighed and gave Chanyeol a small nod in response before following after Junmyeon, rubbing his aching jaw again.

He knocked on the door for the second time that day, walking in when Junmyeon barked out an order for him to enter. He was going to have to try and keep his own annoyance and anger in check because it was extremely rare for their leader to lose his temper with anyone the way that he had with him today.

Baekhyun shut the door behind him quietly, eyeing Junmyeon warily as he made his way over to sit in one of the chairs opposite where he was sat at his desk. Junmyeon’s hard gaze was fixed on him and Baekhyun thought that this was actually the most unapproachable that he’d ever seen him.

“Where’s Soyeon?”

Baekhyun cleared his throat before answering. “She’s with Sehun.”

“Oh? Do you want to tell me why she’s with Sehun instead of with a perfectly good babysitter that I found for you when Sehun is actually supposed to be meeting with Tao tonight? He’s not supposed to be looking after your four-year-old.” Junmyeon grated out.

“I didn’t know that Sehun was meeting Tao, neither you nor he told me about that and you needed me here tonight, so I’m here.” Baekhyun was trying to keep his attitude at bay but judging by the glare Junmyeon was shooting his way he wasn’t doing a very good job at it.

“You guys are so fucking useless, you can’t even communicate,” Junmyeon grumbled. “I’m starting to wonder why I haven’t replaced half of you yet.”

“If you want to try and find someone else to do the things that I do for you and that’s actually willing to die for you, be my fucking guest,” Baekhyun shot back at him, clenching his jaw in an attempt to control his rapidly rising temper.

“So,” Junmyeon continued, passing over Baekhyun’s comment because well… he was right. “Are you going to explain to me what happened yesterday and why you did what you did? Not only did you throw yourself at a close friend of mine when I told you not to, you then completely turned on her? Why would you even do that, you know she’s a good friend of mine!”

“You know why,” Baekhyun grunted, tongue poking his cheek and showing his agitation. When Junmyeon simply glared and waited for him to continue, he huffed. “I didn’t want her there in the first place. You might trust her but I don’t! So I flirted with her to try and scare her off and when that didn’t work it became pretty obvious that she was exactly the kind of person I thought she was. So I tried a different approach.”

“So you thought it was perfectly okay to absolutely terrify someone that I care about, to the point where she left with no way of getting home when she lives on the other side of the goddamned city? She walked, you know that right?” Junmyeon barked at him.

Baekhyun did actually feel a little bit of guilt when he heard that, not expecting her to have walked all the way back to her place. All that did, however, was make him feel even more annoyed because Baekhyun didn’t feel guilt. It wasn’t as if she was the only young woman ever to walk around at evening alone, even if their city wasn’t one of the safest of places.

“That’s not my problem,” Baekhyun replied simply with a slight shrug.

“You really think that? When it’s your fault she left without her bag, in tears, in the first place?” When Baekhyun remained stubbornly silent, he finally had enough. “When are you going to get it into your head that not everyone is against you? I know her and I have for years. I trust her, that should have been enough for you! Did it ever occur to you that maybe, just maybe, the only reason she took up my offer of the damn job is because she needed it?”

Baekhyun sat there quietly as the other man ranted at him, knowing better than to interrupt him this time around.

“Her parents disowned her, for fuck’s sake! She has literally nobody apart from me and her other college friends who can’t exactly do much to help her!”

Baekhyun actually winced when he heard that, remembering what he’d said to her the night before. If he’d have known that, he wouldn’t have said what he did. His own relationship with his parents wasn’t the greatest and he knew exactly what that could do to somebody. For once, he was actually willing to feel the guilt for something that he’d done.

“She doesn’t even know that we’re in the mafia, you idiot!” Junmyeon railed on, barely stopping to breathe. He’d really had enough of Baekhyun’s attitude and the way he treated people. “I’ve worked damn hard to make sure that she never finds out and I put all of that on the line so that she could work for you! I wasn’t even doing it just to help her, I was trying to help both of you! I told you that she was a good girl, she’s just a fucking college student, why couldn’t you just trust me?”

“It’s not you that I don’t trust, I don’t trust her!” Baekhyun burst out finally, the guilt and frustration that he felt being too much for him. Baekhyun wasn’t good with handling his emotions and that was a fact that everyone knew quite well.

“You’ll never learn to trust anyone other than us if you never give anyone a goddamn chance!” Junmyeon yelled back just as loudly. “She was disowned by her parents because she wanted just a little bit of fucking freedom, do you really think she’d lose her family for it just to go and work for one of our rivals who would be a million times worse? She’s not an idiot, she’d never willingly choose a life like this! You might have, some of the others might have, but she’s not you or me. Most people would probably choose to get out of this life if they could, you should know that better than any of us.”

Baekhyun went quiet at the mention of Soyeon’s mother and the way that she’d just walked away from both him and her newborn daughter without even a single glance back. When he’d first met Jia through Junmyeon, she’d already been a part of the criminal world. She’d been raised in it and he’d never had to worry for someone else other than Soyeon. Jia knew what she was doing and she could take care of herself. Ever since he’d met Junmyeon, everyone he’d encountered had been a part of this world and he knew that the other man was right. Jia had wanted to leave, to start over and he’d known that but he’d refused to give it to her. He wouldn’t leave the 8 other men that had become his family.

He’d believed that everything would work itself out and after Soyeon, he’d thought she’d stay. But he’d been wrong. As much as he hated her for leaving them behind and for destroying him so completely, he couldn’t even really blame her. She’d seen her chance and she’d taken it.

Junmyeon’s determination to protect his friend from the life that they were firmly ensconced in made him question himself: if he’d actually been wrong about her, and Junmyeon was right and she was as innocent as he claimed. Though there was still a battle going on within himself because that thought didn’t sit well with him. Baekhyun didn’t trust easily, not after Jia and all of the other women since.

“Baekhyun,” Junmyeon started, his voice softening a little as he watched his friend who had his eyes glued to a spot on his desk. “I just want to help you. It’s been four years, when are you going to let me?”

Baekhyun startled slightly at the sound of the other man’s voice, too caught up in his own thoughts. He moved his gaze away from the wooden surface to meet Junmyeon’s before he spoke, his voice quiet. “Why do you think she’d be able to help in the first place? It’s not as if I’d just warm up to her because you want me to, and besides, I did a pretty good job of scaring her off.”

“Soyeon likes her, when does Soyeon ever warm up to someone that quickly? You know that we all want what’s best for her and she needs a woman around, Baekhyun. You can’t keep on the way that you are without someone to look after her either and she is a genuine and caring person. It’d be a good step for you to let someone in, even if it is only to take care of Soyeon. You should give it a chance Baekhyun, if it doesn’t work out just tell me and I’ll stop trying to force it.” Junmyeon stated and Baekhyun stayed silent for a moment, chewing on his bottom lip as he contemplated his friend’s words.

“Fine,” Baekhyun conceded with a small sigh. “If you can convince her to come back then I’ll give it a go.”

Junmyeon shook his head at his friend. “This is your mess to fix. If you’re willing to give her a chance then you need to convince her yourself.”

Baekhyun actually groaned. Of course, he’d make him do it. Baekhyun wondered if it was too late to take it back because Baekhyun didn’t do apologies but one look at Junmyeon’s face told him that wasn’t an option.

“I’m telling you now though Baekhyun, I don’t want you to pull another stunt like you did yesterday. I will let Yixing loose on you and I’m sure you don’t want that.”

Baekhyun couldn’t contain the small shiver that ran down his spine at that, even though he knew it was, most likely, an empty threat. He did not want that. No one wanted that.

“Okay, fine,” Baekhyun said with a small exhale. Now he just needed to figure out a way to do what the other man wanted him to do. He didn’t think it would go too well.

//

A few days after your talk with Junmyeon at your apartment you received a text from him asking you to go to an ice cream parlor just as you were finishing a lecture. You’d texted him back a quick affirmation before checking the address and deciding to walk as it wasn’t that far from campus.

You’d heard nothing from him about the babysitting thing since he’d tried to convince you to give it another shot and figured that he’d gotten nowhere with Baekhyun on the subject, so you’d resigned yourself to the fact that you were going to have to start job hunting again. You weren’t entirely sure how to feel about it all. On the one side, the babysitting job was something you needed desperately, but you really weren’t sure that you could be around Baekhyun after everything that had happened between you. On the other hand, you’d had no luck finding a job before and you were sure the case would remain the same.

By the time you got to the place, you were ready to both eat your problems away and vent to your best friend. Maybe you could put your stubbornness aside for once and ask him for a job? He’d probably help if you asked.

It didn’t take you long to reach the small, out of the way ice cream parlor. You pushed the door open with a small smile on your face, excited to see your best friend, only for your smile to vanish when you stepped inside and your eyes landed on Baekhyun. The place was practically empty, only a few couples sat at the tables enjoying their food, so it wasn’t hard to miss him and the little girl beside him.

Baekhyun looked uncomfortable, as though he really didn’t want to be there and you were feeling the same, as well as feeling pretty pissed over the situation. While you’d told Junmyeon that Baekhyun would have to make things right himself, you felt deceived; you were already in a bit of a bad mood and you’d thought you were meeting your best friend. You turned to leave just as Baekhyun jumped up from his seat, having read the fact that you were deeply unhappy by the look on your face.

“Wait!” He blurted, reaching out to stop you from walking away and you couldn’t contain your flinch, still uncomfortable around him. He held his hands up as a way to try and placate you. “Can you just… stay and talk for a bit?”

You narrowed your eyes at him, feeling even more annoyed at yourself for actually considering staying. He shifted nervously from foot to foot and you found yourself wondering why he was nervous of all things. If anyone should be nervous it was you, given the way he’d been with you the last time you’d seen him. You were still thinking about leaving when Soyeon noticed you.

“Buttercup!” She exclaimed happily, putting down her spoon for the ice cream she’d been slowly working her way through and climbing off of the chair to run over to you. You cringed at the name. You were never going to get rid of it, apparently. “You stay for ice cream?”

You looked down to the little girl’s hopeful face and wondered how much of a monster you would be if you said no. She actually looked happy to see you. You nibbled on your lower lip as you contemplated. You felt your phone vibrate in your pocket and pulled it out, only to see a message from Junmyeon.

[Jun: 3.48pm] _Look, I know you’re probably mad at me for not telling you but I didn’t think you’d agree to meet him without me there. Just let him talk to you, okay? I’ll make it up to you!_

You scowled at your phone, replying that he owed you a really nice dinner, before sliding it back into your pocket. You pointedly ignored Baekhyun, smiling down at Soyeon softly.

“Sure, I can stay for ice cream.”

The little girl squealed happily, grabbing your hand in her tiny one before dragging you over to the table and you found yourself chuckling at her enthusiasm. She climbed back onto her chair after letting you go and you chose to sit beside her on the opposite side of the table from where Baekhyun had been sitting when you’d walked in. You were about to pull your purse from your bag to go and get yourself something when Baekhyun stopped you.

“I’ll get you something, what would you like?”

“Ummm, can I get a mint chocolate sundae please?” you asked him and he nodded before walking away to order.

You sat there watching Soyeon trying to demolish the huge sundae that was in front of her and you found yourself wondering how one small girl was able to eat that much ice cream. The thing was absolutely massive and yet she was somehow halfway through it already, but then you noticed the second spoon that was laying on the table on top of a napkin and figured that Baekhyun must be sharing with her.

It wasn’t long before Baekhyun returned, slipping into the seat on the other side of the table.

“They’ll bring it over, it shouldn’t be long.” He told you, looking at Soyeon as he picked up his spoon. He grimaced slightly when he noticed the chocolate all over her face, she’d really done a number on herself.

He picked up the spoon, helping himself to a mouthful of the ice cream and you actually thought it was kind of cute, the way that he leaned in next to his daughter as they shared the sundae. When he’d finished with the bite he’d taken, his tongue came out to lick at his bottom lip and your eyes seemed to have a mind of their own as they zeroed in on that simple action and you found yourself staring at his lips. He had nice lips.

“So,” he said after he cleared his throat, his eyes moving from his daughter to you and you looked away quickly, hoping that he hadn’t noticed the way that you’d been staring at his mouth. “What are you studying at college?”

You’d thought he hadn’t noticed but the tiny smirk that was pulling at his lips told you otherwise, and you felt your cheeks heat up a little. Of course he’d notice it, you were an idiot.

“I’m an astrophysics major.” You told him simply, thanking the waitress who silently placed your sundae in front of you with a small smile before she walked away. You picked up your spoon, ready for the delicious goodness that was mint chocolate ice cream, when you glanced over at Baekhyun to see his eyebrows furrowed a little.

“Do you even need physics where star signs are involved?”

You looked at him as though he’d grown another head. Maybe you weren’t the only idiot.

“That… That’s astrology,” You told him, now trying not to laugh at him as you bit on your lower lip. “I specialize in astronomy… You know, I study stars, planets, galaxies all that kind of stuff.”

You watched his mouth form into a little ‘O’ shape as he registered what you said and you finally couldn’t contain the laughter anymore.

“Hey, don’t laugh at me!” Baekhyun actually whined and your laughter stopped because it took you completely by surprise. You didn’t think he was the type to do that. It was cute. Why the fuck was he being so cute?

“Stars are pretty!” Soyeon piped up and Baekhyun took the opportunity to eat some more ice cream and try to get over his embarrassment.

“Stars are very pretty!” You told her enthusiastically, enjoying your own sundae.

“You show me stars?” Soyeon asked, her head tilted in the cute little way that she tended to do when she wanted something.

“Sure! I can show you lots and lots of stars!” You told her and she grinned at you excitedly. You smiled at her, finding her happiness over it rather sweet. You glanced away from her, your eyes meeting Baekhyun’s who was watching you with an expression that you couldn’t quite read.

“What made you want to study astrophysics?” he asked you, continuing with his ice cream as Soyeon continued eating happily.

“I’ve always loved the stars,” you told him with a small shrug. “I found the universe as a whole pretty fascinating.”

“I think it’s actually quite admirable of you to go against your parents like that,” he said, not looking at you as he continued to eat. You narrowed your eyes at him, realizing that while Junmyeon had told you more about him, he’d also shared things about you with the man in front of you. “You should be able to study what you want to study and if they can’t support you in that then that’s their problem, not yours.”

You knew that you should be pissed that Junmyeon had shared that with him, but you didn’t really have a right to after the things that he’d shared with you regarding Baekhyun and so you decided to let it go. It also made you feel as though he was trying to make amends for the words that he’d hurled at you the last time that you’d seen him.

“Thanks.” You mumbled, finishing off your sundae and leaving your spoon in the bowl. You weren’t sure what else you could say to him because you still didn’t really like him and you’d acknowledged his effort at least.

“Well,” Baekhyun started, shifting in his seat again and once more looking very uncomfortable. “If you’re still looking for a job, would you be willing to give the babysitting another go?”

You looked at him blankly, your expression not revealing anything at all as you thought it over. You really did need the job and he’d kind of made an effort to be nice to you and apologize in his own way. That didn’t cancel out his behavior from before in the slightest, even if you were a little more understanding of it. Your eyes moved to the little girl beside him and you had to admit that you already felt quite affectionate toward her.

“Why?” You asked him simply and looked him straight in the eye. If he wanted it that badly he’d have to work for it.

He looked back at you for a moment, his eyes unreadable and once again his tongue darted out to wet his lip and you made a concerted effort not to look at it this time. Then he cleared his throat and answered you.

“A couple of reasons. Junmyeon seems to trust you and I guess I feel like if he can then maybe I can too, even if it took me a while to be willing to try. Soyeon actually likes you as well, which may not seem like a big deal but it actually is. She hates strangers.”

You thought about it for a moment, before finally concluding that you’d do it.

“Fine,” You replied with a rather exaggerated sigh. “But I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing it for Soyeon. It’s not fair for her to have to get used to new people coming into her life all the time.”

Baekhyun gave you a small smile, getting out his phone and unlocking it before handing it to you, telling you to put your number in before he set to work with a napkin on Soyeon’s chocolate covered face. When he was done, you handed it back to him and picked up your bag, figuring it was time to head home.

“Do you want me to drive you home?” Baekhyun asked and you shook your head at him.

“I’m good, I don’t live far,” You informed him bluntly, wondering why the hell he was being so nice and cute for the whole afternoon, and what had happened to the man from the other day?  You turned to Soyeon, ruffling her hair as you said goodbye. “I’ll see you soon princess and we can see about looking at all of those stars, hmm?”

“Bye bye, Buttercup!” She exclaimed with a smile and a big wave and you couldn’t help but smile despite the use of that stupid nickname. You resigned yourself to the fact that you’d have to get used to it.

“I’ll text you later so you have my number and we can talk more about what I’ll need?” Baekhyun asked and you simply nodded at him before turning to leave and head home. You didn’t notice the way that his eyes were glued to your ass as you left.


	4. Part 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smutty chapter ahead!

You were bored and you were struggling to focus, your pen tapping away on the notebook in front of you instead of actually taking notes. You knew most of the stuff that the professor was covering so it wasn’t that much of an issue that your mind kept wandering, though the person beside you kept shooting you irritated looks thanks to the noise that your pen was making.

You put the pen down, giving them an apologetic smile after the last glare, instead starting to pick at your nails as your mind drifted again. It had been just over two weeks since you’d met with Baekhyun at the ice cream shop and you’d settled into a bit of a routine, though things had been a little awkward, on your part at least.

Baekhyun hadn’t been kidding about working strange hours and getting called out at all times of the day and night, but so far it had been working out just fine, especially now that Soyeon had started school. That had started off as a complete disaster as she most certainly had not wanted to go and wasn’t exactly the best at being told what to do. She obviously did not like her teacher due to that fact.

Eventually, she’d settled down a little and now it wasn’t as much of a battle to get her there, which was something you’d had to do yourself on a few occasions. If Baekhyun was out at a reasonable time, he usually drove you home when he got back as long as Soyeon was still up. However, if he worked late and didn’t get back on time, he’d given you permission to use the spare room. Apparently, it wasn’t fair to expect you to make your own way home at 2am and it resulted in you doing the school run with Soyeon some mornings because of Baekhyun’s tiredness.

You’d also discovered that he was a huge flirt and he wasn’t exactly subtle about it. The few times that Junmyeon had been around while you and Baekhyun were in the same room, he’d watched him like a hawk and now you kind of understood why. You try to ignore it as best you can but despite your best efforts, you’re still affected by it. He definitely notices too, going by the cheeky grins and the smirks he gives you when he notices you blushing.  

He’s not as upfront about it as he was the first time you’d met him, but he was definitely doing it more than he had that first night. There were lots of small, light touches, winks and lip bites. He knew exactly what he was doing and what it was doing to you. You weren’t sure how much of it you were going to be able to handle.

At least he toned it down when others were around, especially Junmyeon. You’d met a couple of the other guys that he worked with and was apparently quite good friends with, judging from what you’d seen. You remembered one from the time that you’d met Junmyeon at the cafe. He’d stood out to you because of his blonde hair and the cheekbones but you’d learned that his name was Chen. You’d discovered that he was loud, whiny and a bit of a joker. You quite liked him, so far.

The other one that you’d met was called Kai and whenever he was around it was almost as if the flirting escalated tenfold, due to both him and Baekhyun seemingly trying to outdo each other. Kai was a natural flirt and it really didn’t take much for him to get you a little flustered and Baekhyun really seemed to dislike that. The few times that Chen had been there while Kai and Baekhyun were at it, he seemed to find it highly amusing, especially when Baekhyun’s annoyance showed through. You just wondered why Baekhyun was getting worked up over it in the first place, and why he seemed to get especially snappish when you didn’t put a stop to Kai’s flirting.

You were pulled back to the present when your professor started reading from a list of names and you were a little bit ashamed to admit that you’d completely missed what was going on. It didn’t take you long to realize that he was pairing people up for a project and you wondered exactly how you were going to manage this. You hadn’t taken partnered projects into consideration when accepting a job with unpredictable hours.

Your brows furrowed in confusion when the professor called out your name and another that you were pretty sure you’d never have a hope in hell of being able to pronounce and that you were quite certain you’d also never heard before. Who the hell was that?

You were still trying to work out who you were supposed to be partnered with when your professor finished reading out all of the names and people began packing up to leave. You started slipping your things into your own bag when you noticed someone coming to a stop in front of where you were sat, leaning against your desk as though he belonged there.

“I guess we’re partners then! It’s nice to meet you.”

You looked up at the guy that had spoken to you, noting the blonde hair and the plump lips that definitely stood out. You wanted to say something about the way he was propped against your desk, but you decided against it.

“Uh, It’s nice to meet you too…” You started, but trailed off without even attempting to pronounce his name. He noticed, his face lighting up as he laughed.

“BamBam.” He supplied and you smiled at him thankfully.

“It’s nice to meet you too, BamBam.” You finished. You weren’t entirely sure how you felt about the guy in front of you. His posture, his confidence, the way he looked… everything about him screamed fuckboy. But then, he also seemed pretty nice. You’d just have to wait a little longer before you judged.

“Do you have some time to talk a little about the project right now? Or if you have somewhere to be we can just exchange numbers and figure it out later? I have some free time so I thought I’d ask.” He inquired, his smile still in place. He actually did seem quite friendly although you’d found yourself wondering how he knew who you were. You had no idea who he was until he’d plonked himself in front of you. Maybe he’d just seen you around or something?

You were about to tell him that you had a free afternoon as well when you felt your phone vibrate in your pocket and you gave him an apologetic smile as you pulled it out. You weren’t surprised to find a text from Baekhyun.

[Baekhyun: 14.02pm] _Can you pick Soyeon up from school today? I have some work to do and won’t be able to get there on time._

You told him that you’d pick her up, slipping your phone back into your pocket and looking back at the guy still draped over your desk.

“I have like an hour? That’s it though, then I really have to go.” You told him and he straightened up, waiting for you to stand and follow him from the lecture hall.

“Great!” He responded, looking back at you with a grin as he began to lead you out of the building. “How about we work out what we’re gonna do over coffee?”

You found yourself simply nodding at him, following him to the parking lot.

//

An hour and fifteen minutes later you let out a small groan, finally realizing the time. You quickly began putting away your things, that you hadn’t even used because you’d just found yourselves chatting for the time that you’d been in the coffee shop. You were going to be late to pick Soyeon up, even if you rushed. Why didn’t you drive?

“Is everything okay?” BamBam asked you, looking a little concerned at your sudden panic.

“Yeah, I’m just going to be late,” You told him hurriedly, not wanting to be rude but really needing to get a move on. “I work as a babysitter and I need to pick the kid up from school in fifteen minutes.”

“How far is it?” He asked you, starting to pack away his own things.

“Further away than 15 minutes, because I don’t drive.” You told him bluntly.

“Alright, I can drive you.” He told you and you were about to turn him down before you decided against it. You’d enjoyed the last hour or so with him, finding him both funny and approachable. It couldn’t hurt to let him drop you off.

“That’d be great, thanks!” You told him with a relieved sigh, following him from the coffee shop and over to his car.

Once you’d settled yourself into the passenger seat, BamBam sliding into the driver’s seat beside you, he handed you his phone after unlocking it before starting the car.

“Which way are we going?” He asked and you gave him directions, guessing that he wanted you to give him your number as you hadn’t exactly gotten much work done.  

It didn’t take long for you to get to the school with BamBam driving you there and you thanked him as he pulled up outside, handing him back his phone. BamBam let out a small whistle when he saw the school you were at.

“This is a pretty good school,” he stated and you blinked at him. How would he know that? “Her parents must be quite well off.”

You found the observation a little weird but you shrugged it off. There could be any number of reasons as to why he knew that.

“Her dad has a pretty decent job,” You told him with a small lift of your shoulders. “Thanks for dropping me off, you’re a lifesaver!”

He gave a small hum of acknowledgment as you stepped out of the car before a thought came to you and you turned back, dipping your head back in.

“Hey, I’m having a small birthday party at Electric Kiss on Saturday, if you’d like to come? As a thank you for dropping me off, I guess?”

“Sure! Sounds fun! I’ll text you later and we can rearrange starting this project, okay?” He told you with a small laugh, obviously finding the fact that you’d gotten no work done today a little amusing. “You should get going now.”

You thanked him once again before shutting the door and rushing inside. When you came back out with Soyeon, you didn’t notice that he was parked just a little further down the street and that his eyes were following the two of you.

//

You were sat on the floor in front of the coffee table, your laptop, notebooks and textbooks spread around you as you tried to come up with a topic for the project. The problem, was that while BamBam had your number, you didn’t have his. He hadn’t texted or called you yet so you had no idea what you could do other than create a list of potential subjects for him to choose from.

Soyeon was off playing in her room, giving you a little bit of space to try and figure it out but going back over all of the things from the semester had given you a bit of a headache. You let out a small sigh, rubbing at your eyes tiredly when your phone vibrated on the table in front of you. You reached out to grab it, smiling when you saw who it was from.

[Junmyeon: 16.42pm]  _Happy Birthday, Buttercup! Sorry I’m not able to do anything today but I’ll see you Saturday, okay? I hope you had a good day!_

He’d been really busy again, so you were happy that he’d remembered. You quickly text him back to thank him and assure him that you’d had a wonderful day. You put your phone back where it had been, stretching as you stood up from your place on the floor, feeling a little stiff as you’d been sat there for almost an hour. You had no idea what time Baekhyun would be back today and decided that you should give Soyeon something to eat, at least until Baekhyun texts you to let you know that he wouldn’t be back for dinner. She needed something to tide her over and a sandwich wouldn’t hurt.

You walked down the hallway, popping your head around her bedroom door. Her bedroom was an explosion of pink and white, toys scattered everywhere. The girl was sat in the middle of her bed playing with some of her dolls quietly, and you thought that she really did look like a little princess with the way that the sheer canopy fell around the bed.

“Soyeon, are you hungry?” You asked and the little girl looked up, nodding quickly before going back to playing with the dolls hair. You were glad she didn’t want to play with yours this time. “Do you want a sandwich?”

“Yes please!” She exclaimed happily. “With cucumbers?”

You nodded at her with a small smile, backing out of the room with a small shake of your head. You’d learned that there were only two people willing to face Baekhyun’s wrath by bringing cucumbers into his home, Sehun and yourself. Soyeon took every opportunity that she could to eat them whenever you or Sehun were around. You weren’t sure why she loved them so much but you weren’t about to deny her; it wasn’t as if they were bad for her.

You busied yourself in the kitchen, humming to yourself as you focused on putting the sandwich together. You called out to Soyeon when you’d finished, handing her the small plate so that she could take it to the living room to eat it at the coffee table. She let out a happy squeal when she saw that it was ham and cucumber, one of her favorites.

You chuckled quietly as she ran off with her food, turning back to clear up the mess that you’d made. You put the ingredients away and washed up the chopping board and utensils. You’d just finished wiping down the counter when you felt a body press up against your own from behind, a hard chest meeting your back and a pair of arms coming around you to place a box in front of you.

You completely froze, blinking at the box in confusion and also feeling slightly flustered because why the hell was he pressed up against you like this and, even more importantly, why didn’t you mind it? Despite the constant flirting from him over the past few weeks, the small, lingering touches, he hadn’t gotten this close to you since the first time you’d met him and your body was reacting while your mind ceased to function.

“Happy Birthday,” He breathed into your ear and you shivered slightly. He definitely felt it, and you felt the smirk pull at his lips when he moved his face move to the crook of your neck, his lips brushing against your exposed skin as he continued speaking. “Open it?”

You reached out an unsteady hand as his own came to grip your hips, moving on autopilot to do as he asked. You were taken completely off guard by the affection he was showing you and the fact that he knew it was your birthday. Only a few people knew that it was actually your birthday and you were sure you hadn’t told him. When you lifted the lid of the box to find a small, chocolate birthday cake, you were stunned. Your mind was a jumbled mess of how he’d known, why this was happening and why you liked it when you should probably still be mad at him, you couldn’t seem to piece a single coherent thought together.

“Are you going to thank me?” He asked you, placing soft kisses along your exposed skin. When his lips settled on an especially sensitive spot, your body practically melted into his and his grip tightened on your hips, slowly starting to turn you to face him.

“Daddy!”

The happy shout from Soyeon yanked you back down to earth abruptly and Baekhyun released his grip on you with a small groan, pulling away quickly and turning to face his daughter.

“Hey princess, how was school?” He asked, crouching down as the little girl launched herself at him for a hug. She pulled away from him, making a face at him that said everything sucked and you both laughed, albeit yours was a little more breathless than his. You cleared your throat, gaining both of their attention.

“I should really be getting home, I have a project to work on and an early start tomorrow,” you told Baekhyun, not exactly lying to him but stretching the truth a little. Your mind was still a little fuzzy and you needed some space to process what had just happened.

“Ok, I’ll drive you home,” he said with a nod of his head, standing back up and facing you. “Can you just give me a moment? I have to go get something.”

You nodded to assure him that it was fine, watching as he left the kitchen with Soyeon scampering along behind him. After a moment you followed them out, going to the living room to pack up your things. Despite the mess you’d made, it didn’t take long and you were just zipping up your bag when Baekhyun came back into the living room, Soyeon not following this time. He had another box in his hands, this one nicely wrapped and your eyes widened. You hadn’t expected the cake, let alone a gift to go along with it.

He walked over to you holding out the box and you noted the silver stars dotting the black paper. You blinked at it, not reaching out to take it and he cleared his throat, shifting on the balls of his feet and looking slightly uncomfortable.

“This is for you.”

When he spoke your mind seemed to wake up and you reached out to take it from him with a small smile, sitting down on the couch behind. He settled himself beside you, looking almost nervous as you unwrapped the gift, trying not to destroy the pretty paper that it was wrapped in.

You let out a small gasp when you’d finally freed the gift and you noticed what it was. He’d gotten you a small nightlight that would project the different constellations around the room.

“Uh, I wasn’t really sure what to get you but I remembered that you said you liked the stars so-” He started, but you cut him off when you practically launched yourself at him in your excitement, hugging him and thanking him. You were grinning at him and much too happy and excited to register the look of surprise on his face when you pulled away. You’d wanted one of these for quite a while, given that you lived in the city and it was rare for you to be able to see the stars without using a telescope.

“Is it alright if I leave it here?” You asked him softly. “For when I have to stay over?”

Baekhyun nodded dumbly, clearing his throat as he did so and shifting in his seat. “Sure, if you want to. You can put it in your room and then I’ll take you home?”

You grinned at him, jumping up from your seat and taking the box into the spare room. It was only when you were setting up the gift that you registered just how flustered he’d been at your affectionate actions and you found yourself wondering why, when he’d been all over you just a little bit beforehand. You pondered on it the whole journey home before finally concluding that he was just confusing. He was confident, a flirt and had no problem touching you whenever he felt like it. You couldn’t understand his reaction to a simple hug.

//

Your college friend Dana had decided that she was going to drive you to the club, something you were feeling quite thankful for due to what you were wearing. She’d somehow convinced you to wear a figure-hugging silver dress, a little on the short side and with a low dip in the back. You were glad that it covered most of your chest otherwise there was no way she’d have convinced you to squeeze yourself into it.

You tried to steady yourself on your black heels as you climbed out of her car, wondering how you’d let her talk you into wearing those too. Your feet were going to hate you tomorrow. She came around quickly, linking her arm with yours as she dragged you off down the street to meet your other friends, who were most likely already waiting for you.

You looked over at your petite friend, walking confidently along beside you. Her long black hair was curled perfectly, her tight, sheer red top and short leather skirt not really leaving much to the imagination. She was the wild one of your little group of friends, always up for anything and it showed in the way that she dressed and carried herself. You envied her for that a little, actually. She just didn’t care what anyone else thought and did her own thing.

“So the plan for tonight,” she told you, looking over at you with a cheeky grin. “Is for you to actually let loose and enjoy yourself for once, maybe get a little wasted and if everything goes to plan, maybe find a hot guy to take home.”

You stared at her, groaning internally. That had not been a part of your own plan, not in the slightest. You were up for having fun and some drinks, you just hoped that she wouldn’t deem any of the guys worthy of taking you home because then she would be doing everything in her power to ensure that happened. It wouldn’t be the first time and it probably wouldn’t be the last either.

The queue outside the club was incredibly long and you felt a bit bad walking past them all, knowing that you weren’t going to have to wait out in the cold like everyone else. Junmyeon had already assured you that anyone coming for the small thing he was holding for you would be let straight in and you couldn’t help but feel a little guilty over it.

Your other friends were waiting for you just off to the side. Fei was tall, her straight blonde hair falling down past her waist. She was the more elegant one of your group, not a hair out of place and dressed a little more conservatively. Sohee was a little shorter and on the curvier side. She embraced it, dressed to accentuate her curves and she was extremely pretty. Her chocolate brown hair was on the shorter side, framing her face perfectly.

Fei noticed you first, her white flowy dress swishing around as she jogged over to you and pulled you into a hug, Sohee trailing along beside her at a slower pace. You couldn’t help but chuckle, because while Fei appeared to be the classy type most people would hesitate to approach, she was an actual marshmallow and probably the most affectionate out of all of you.

“You can let me go now.” You chuckled and she gave you one last squeeze before releasing you, turning to do the same to Dana. You greeted Sohee with a small hug.

“I’m sorry I missed your birthday.” Sohee apologized and you shook your head at her. She’d had to go home for a few days for a family emergency and it couldn’t really be helped. It wasn’t as though you’d have been able to do anything anyway, what with college and having to work.

“It’s fine,” you assured her, giving her arm a small squeeze. “Your family is more important!”

You were about to turn to the others and break up their animated conversation, noticing the way that they kept glancing over at you and wanting to put a stop to whatever it was that they were planning when you heard a familiar voice calling out to you. You looked past your two friends that were still talking, their eyes darting between you and each other as they talked, only to see BamBam jogging up behind them.

“Oh, you came!” You exclaimed as a greeting and your friends heads turned simultaneously to look at the tall blonde. They were completely unashamed as their eyes trailed over him from head to toe before they turned back to each other, Dana shaking her head slightly. She had obviously deemed him as unworthy of being the one to take you home. They knew that you were a horny drinker, but they’d be damned if they let you go home with someone that they didn’t approve of. He looked a little baffled by it but shrugged it off.

“I told you that I would,” he told you with a small shrug and a grin. “Were you about to head in?”

You nodded at him. “Yeah, you can come in with us!”

You turned to your friends, introducing them to him and he greeted them each with a grin. He didn’t even falter at Dana’s glare. You nudged her in the side, trying to tell her to be nice. She had a habit of acting like this when guys that she didn’t approve of got too close to you and it seemed she’d taken a bit of an instant dislike to the poor guy. She completely ignored your elbow in her side, and you let out a small sigh as you turned to head inside.

//

Baekhyun was annoyed for a multitude of reasons. One of them was that he was in the VIP section on the main floor of the club surrounded by far too many college students. He was quite sure that Junmyeon had told you that it was going to be a small thing, but oh boy had he lied. Junmyeon had apparently found a way of getting half of the damn campus here.

Another, was that apparently all of the other guys had decided to take this as a night off and enjoy themselves. Even Junmyeon was off having a rare moment of fun himself, Chanyeol with him. Baekhyun felt as though he were the only one even attempting to keep an eye on things.

That brought him to the main reason for his annoyance and it was aimed toward himself more than anything. No matter how much he tried to focus on everything going on around him, he kept finding his attention drawn to the main doors, looking and waiting for you to get here. He was growing more annoyed each time he caught himself doing it.

“You should loosen up a little, nothing’s going to happen tonight,” Jongin told him as he came up beside him, leaning with his elbows resting on the glass railing that allowed those in the VIP section to still see what was happening in the main club below.  

“You can guarantee that, can you?” Baekhyun grunted in response, his eyes drifting over the bodies moving under the strobe lights below him.

“Oh don’t be an idiot,” Jongin sighed, his own gaze on the dance floor below, though for totally different reasons. “Most of us are here tonight, no one will be stupid enough to try anything.”

Baekhyun thought it over for a moment before concluding that he was right. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to join the others and just have fun for a night. He’d been a little too stressed out recently anyway, it could help. Find a girl, let go for a while, enjoy himself a little. It wasn’t as if he didn’t do that when he had the free time anyway.

He looked over at the man beside him when he let out a low whistle, pushing himself away from the railing with a small clap of his hands. “I think I’ve found my girl for tonight.”

Baekhyun followed his line of sight, curious as to who his friend had decided on so abruptly. He was a bit of a slut, sure, but he usually took a little while to decide when it wasn’t work related.

His eyes went to the group of people that had just entered the club, his eyes landing on you instantly. He took in the way that your hair fell in silky waves around your shoulders, the incredibly tight silver dress hugging your body perfectly and showing off your slender legs. He actually felt his body heating up just by looking at you and though he knew he was staring, he couldn’t seem to stop.

“Looks like you’ve picked one too,” Jongin said with a chuckle, nudging him with his shoulder. “Which one?”

Jongin’s question pulled his attention away from you and as his eyes drifted over your small group, his intention to look at the man beside him, he froze. Standing next to you was a tall blonde with a face that seemed awfully familiar. His brows furrowed as he tried to place how he recognized the guy. It took a few moments for it to actually click.

“Oh, shit.”

Jongin straightened beside him, instantly alert. “What is it?”

“Can you go and get Junmyeon?” Baekhyun asked, his eyes never leaving you or the man beside you.

“What’s the problem?” Junmyeon said, having been making his way over to them anyway. He’d taken note of their behavior and figured that something wasn’t right.

“One of JB’s guys is here,” Baekhyun told him, still not looking away from the pair of you. He couldn’t work out why he was here with you, of all people, and he definitely didn’t like it.

Junmyeon scowled when Baekhyun added on that the guy was with you, obviously not liking that just as much as Baekhyun. He stayed quiet for a moment, thinking over his options. Baekhyun knew that there wasn’t much he could do at the moment, not while the guy was with you and their group of friends and the club was filled with students. They needed to work out why exactly he was here, but they needed to be careful about it.

He turned to Sehun, probably one of the only members that BamBam wouldn’t know. “Can you try and get him away from her?”

Sehun nodded, following Baekhyun’s line of sight to see that you were now with all of your friends at the bar, apparently intent on having a good night judging by the rows of shots being placed in front of you all. He left quietly and Baekhyun glanced away from where you were laughing with your friends to watch him as he wove his way through all of the dancing bodies to get to where you were. When Sehun finally reached you, you giving him a welcoming smile, Baekhyun finally turned away.

“Why is he with her?” He demanded from Junmyeon. “You told me she isn’t involved with any of this.”

“She’s not!” The other man snapped, annoyed that Baekhyun was questioning him over this again. “I don’t know why he’s with her or why he’s here but I’m damn well going to find out!”

Baekhyun grit his teeth, trying to calm himself down. He’d already made the decision to trust Junmyeon where you were concerned and this was now testing his resolve. He didn’t trust you, but he did trust his friend.

“Baekhyun, let’s just try and figure out what’s going on okay? It’ll be fine.” Junmyeon said and Baekhyun found himself nodding. They could at least figure that out before he let whatever tiny little bit of progress had been made between you over the past couple of weeks crumble.

“I’ll keep an eye on her.” He stated simply and Junmyeon inclined his head briefly before he turned away to find the other guys.

As it turned out, the girl that Jongin had set his sights on was one of your friends. Baekhyun wasn’t exactly surprised, the tall blonde was certainly his type. That meant that not only did you have Sehun with you, Jongin was there as well and for some reason, that fact seemed to make it just a little easier for him to keep his emotions in check. He was torn between wanting you away from the guy because of something that seemed awfully like jealousy and his usual mindset telling him that you weren’t to be trusted. The mixed feelings were messing with him.

After what seemed like forever, Sehun and Jongin succeeded in separating you and your friends from BamBam in the unusually crowded VIP section. Baekhyun actually felt a little relieved, though he refused to think more on it and would just rather pretend that he hadn’t. Once Baekhyun was sure that you were occupied, he finally moved away from his spot against the wall.

He looked around, his eyes meeting Junmyeon’s from across the room. He’d had every intention of dealing with BamBam himself, but apparently Jun had different ideas. Junmyeon nodded toward you, clearly telling Baekhyun that it was his job to ensure that you stayed occupied whilst he and BamBam had a little chat, so he changed course and headed over to where you were sat at the bar with a couple of your friends and Sehun.

Baekhyun figured that his best bet for things to go smoothly would be to get you out of the VIP section altogether, though he wasn’t entirely sure that would be too easy. He was wrong about that, however. It seems that the alcohol you’d consumed had made you a little less inhibited as usual, judging by the way that your eyes had raked over him when he’d gone to greet you. He knew he looked good and apparently you thought so too.

He’d be lying if he said that he didn’t like the way that your eyes had trailed over him, starting from his feet. Your eyes had stopped on his thighs for a moment, obviously enjoying the way his jeans hugged them judging by the way you’d licked your lip slightly. His black turtleneck with a silver chain over the top and the black leather jacket were also a combination that you seemed to appreciate. It was only once your eyes landed on his face that you seemed to realize what you’d just done and he found himself smirking at the slight blush that came to your cheeks.

When he asked you to dance with him, you accepted eagerly and it took him a little by surprise though he certainly wasn’t complaining. When you climbed off of the stool he reached out to steady you as you seemed a little unsteady on your feet though it didn’t seem to take much effort for you to regain your balance. He came to the conclusion that you were just a little tipsy, rather than drunk. When he turned to lead you away, his arm around your waist to keep you near him with so many people around, his eyes landed on one of your friends. She stared back at him, completely unashamed to have been caught looking at him. She gave him a thumbs up just as he turned away and he glanced back at her with his brows knitted slightly. What the hell?

Jongin and your friend were already on the dance floor and it didn’t take long for the both of you to lose yourselves just as much as they had. He had a tight grip on your hips as your body moved against his, seemingly lost in your own little world as you let yourself go for once. Your already short skirt seemed to be inching higher with each grind of your hips and every time you pushed your ass up against him he seemed to lose a little bit of his self-control.

He was actually trying to behave himself for once in his life and do what Junmyeon had asked him to do but you really were not making it easy for him. When your ass brushed up against him with a little more force than before, he felt his cock twitch in his pants and he knew he wasn’t going to be able to hold out if you kept doing it.

“If you keep doing that I’m going to fuck you right here on the dance floor.” He growled into your ear, one of his hands releasing you so that he could wrap his arm around your waist as his body moved with yours.

His statement seemed to have the opposite effect to what he’d intended as you deliberately did it again and he involuntarily let out a small groan. That small sound from him seemed to motivate you and you spun around in his arms, looking up at him as his fingers now brushed against the exposed skin of your back. The heat in your eyes caught him a little by surprise, though his own darkened in response to it.

You stared up at him for a moment before you moved, your hand coming up to grip the chain that was around his neck before you used it to pull his head down, your lips colliding with his. He let out a small grunt, freezing for a moment as he had a passing thought that if Junmyeon saw this he was a dead man. But then he registered the feeling of your soft lips moving against his and the momentary thought evaporated.

Once he took control of the kiss, things grew heated very quickly. His tongue completely dominated your mouth, his hands roaming over your exposed skin as you clung to him to keep yourself steady as you continued to grind against each other. He smirked when he nipped at your lips and little whines left you, though it was definitely affecting him more than he’d thought it would, the fact that you seemed to want him just as badly as he wanted you.

He bit at your bottom lip, his mouth leaving yours to leave a heated trail of kisses along your jaw to your neck, your small whines turning into soft moans and he found himself wondering if it’d be a good idea to make use of an empty bathroom. Then, you asked something he’d never thought he’d actually hear coming from you.

“Can we go back to your place?”

The question was a breathy whimper in his ear as he sucked on the skin of your neck and he found himself freezing for a moment before he finally pulled away from you. He looked down at you for a moment, before finally concluding that yes, you had just asked him that.

Due to his hesitation, you looked as though you were about to change your mind and he quickly nodded, his usual smirk back in place when he answered you. “Sure, Buttercup. If that’s what you want?”

When you nodded at him, almost eagerly, he actually caught his lips pulling up into a smile before he realized and forced it away. He didn’t waste any more time in getting you back to his.

//

The drive back to his place was a heated one, one of his hands on the wheel and the other constantly touching you. His hands continued roaming as soon as you stepped into his apartment building and during the elevator ride up to his floor. By the time the elevator doors slid open, your lips were melded to his as you both stumbled down the hallway and he struggled to get his front door open.

Once the door was shut quite loudly behind you, you wasted no time in pushing his leather jacket off his shoulders as his mouth moved to the column of your throat. He sank his teeth into the skin and you whimpered at the sensation, your hands gripping onto his shoulders as he began to suck a small mark onto your skin.

The both of you were so caught up in each other that you didn’t notice that you weren’t alone, not hearing the “Oh god, my eyes!” and the sound of someone else rushing off into the spare room.  

You let out a small moan when he sucked a little harder on your skin before pulling away, looking extremely satisfied with the mark that was left behind. His mouth came back to yours and you parted your lips eagerly, easily allowing him access that he took full advantage of. Your tongue tangled with his, your arms and legs wrapping around him as he lifted you to carry you down the hall to his bedroom.

This time he shut the door a little bit more quietly and you kicked off your heels. Wasting no more time, he lay you down on his bed, removing his own shoes before he climbed over you. You parted your legs for him, allowing him to settle himself between your thighs and you quickly wrapped your legs around him to pull him closer to you.

When you pushed your hips up against his, brushing against the bulge in his pants he pulled away from you with a small groan, once again bringing his mouth back to your throat as his hands began to stroke along your exposed thighs. He spent a little while nipping and sucking at the skin of your neck, making you whimper and grind against him each time he sank his teeth into your soft flesh.

After one particularly harsh grind of your hips against his that signaled to him just how needy you were getting, he pulled back, his eyes drifting over the marks that he’d left on your exposed skin for a moment before his hands came up to find the zipper of your dress. Once you were free from the clinging material he moved away from you and you worked on removing your bra and panties as he freed himself from his own clothes.

He left the silver chain on, something you very much appreciated as you used it to pull him back down to you so that his heated skin was flush with yours. You went to kiss him but he simply placed a short, hard kiss against your lips before his mouth moved lower again. His hands gripped onto your thighs tightly as his lips moved to your chest, giving it the same treatment as he’d already given your neck.

Each graze of his teeth against your skin had whimpers leaving you and you felt him smirking against you, obviously enjoying the fact that you seemed to like this little kink of his as much as he did. Your mind was spinning, the only thing that you could focus on was your arousal and your need for him to touch you. As much as you loved what he was doing, it wasn’t enough for you anymore.

“Baekhyun, please,” You whined at him and he looked up at you, his lips brushing against your skin as he spoke.

“What do you want?”

You moaned softly when he sank his teeth into your plump breast, his fingers now so close to where you wanted them as they brushed against your thighs.

“Touch me,” you told him, not caring if you were whiny and needy. You’d barely finished speaking when his fingers were brushing against your folds. You moaned when his fingers spread the slickness around before he finally pressed one against your clit with a small groan.

“You’re so wet,” he murmured, his lips leaving a heated trail along your skin until they hovered above your own. “You like being marked that much?”

The teasing touches from his fingers were leaving you breathless and all you could do was nod, because you did like it. You really, really did.

“Good,” he breathed, sliding one of his slender fingers into you as he caught your breathless moan with his lips and your back arched, pressing your chest against his. His tongue tangled with yours in an almost leisurely way, a complete contrast to the way that he drove his finger into you, adding a second one when you clung to him tightly.

Your hips moved against his hand, almost of their own accord and your walls clenching around his digits needily. Your whimpers that brushed against his hot lips seemed to bring him to the point that he needed to be inside of you just as badly as you needed him.

He removed his hands and his mouth from you as you whined softly at the loss, moving away from you to get a condom from the nightstand. He tore the foil packet with his teeth, quickly sheathing himself before coming back and hovering over you. He looked down at you for a moment and you quickly grew impatient, reaching between your bodies to line him up with your entrance.

He took that as the invitation that it was, snapping his hips forward and filling you completely in one thrust as you cried out briefly before sinking your teeth into his shoulder. He hissed at the feeling as he repeated the action, setting a hard and unrelenting pace as you moaned against his skin.

Your walls were clenching around him with each thrust of his hips, your nails digging into the skin of his shoulders as his own had a bruising grip on your own, holding you in place for him as he slammed into you repeatedly.

Your breath left you in harsh pants mixed with moans and whimpers. He shifted his angle slightly, the new position allowing him to hit that one sensitive spot inside you and your pleasured cries grew louder in his ears, your walls clenching unrelentingly as he moaned. His own movements began to grow slightly irregular, telling you that he himself was growing close to his release just as you were.

He continued to pound into you as one of his hands came up, his fingers curling loosely around your throat, squeezing gently once before relaxing again. He brought his lips to your ear, his hot breath fanning against you as he spoke.

“Are you going to come for me, baby?”

You couldn’t answer him, due to the way that his hand tightened around your throat, completely cutting off your oxygen. With one final, particularly harsh thrust of his hips your orgasm washed over you. Your mind was spinning, the lack of air heightening the feeling, causing your body to tremble uncontrollably under him as white dots danced behind your closed eyelids.

Your walls clenching around him with a vice-like grip was his own undoing, his grip around your throat loosening enough to allow you to breathe as his own body shuddered above you and he came with a low groan. His body slumped on top of yours for a moment as you both tried to catch your breath. After a few moments, he moved away from you to dispose of the condom and as your breathing calmed down you began to feel extremely tired, the activities from the night having wiped you out completely.

You curled up into a ball, grasping blindly for the covers and snuggling into the pillow once you were finally content. You barely opened your eyes when Baekhyun slid into the bed next to you, laying on his back beside you. He stared up at the ceiling for a minute before turning his head to look at you, a look that you couldn’t quite place on his face.

“I really wasn’t expecting that tonight.”

You gave a small yawn, allowing your eyes to slide shut.

“Well, what can I say?” You mumbled tiredly, already feeling sleep begin to pull you down. “You’re hot for a dad.”

You completely missed the offended look that came to his face, already drifting off, though if you had seen it you probably would have laughed.

//

The following morning, you woke up feeling a little disoriented at finding yourself in an unfamiliar room with a pair of arms and legs wrapped around you from behind. You froze for a moment, before remembering the events of the night before and you could have slapped yourself. Why were you such a horny drinker?

Not that it hadn’t been worth it; it most certainly had been. It was just that he was your boss and now you weren’t entirely sure how this was going to change things. Especially given the rocky start you’d both had up til apparently deciding to fuck each other senseless.

You shifted slightly when you heard the bedroom door click open, turning a little only to come face to face with Baekhyun’s chest. His back was facing the door, blocking whoever it was from seeing you and vice versa. You let out a small sigh of relief, glancing upward only to find Baekhyun looking down at you, already awake.

“Soyeon, what are you… come back here with that!” Jongdae called out from the now open bedroom door and Baekhyun released his grip on you, his daughter’s giggles ringing through the apartment as he turned to look at the other man. You peeked over Baekhyun’s shoulder, flushing slightly at Jongdae’s smirk and his raised eyebrow.

“You could have kept it down, I like to sleep, thanks.” He stated simply and you felt your cheeks burn a little hotter. “Oh, and she ran off with your bra. Might want to get that back.”

Baekhyun sighed, although even he looked a little embarrassed at this point, though that was probably due to his four-year-old running off with that particular article of clothing. He stood from the bed, completely unashamed by his nakedness as he walked over to a dresser against the far wall, pulling out a pair of sweatpants and pulling them on, before opening another drawer and pulling out a shirt.

“We’re probably going to have to chase her down to get that back.” He stated simply, throwing the article of clothing at you so that it landed on your head. You glared at him as you removed it, pulling it on and making sure you were adequately covered before climbing out of bed and searching for your panties. You slipped them on quickly once you found them, Baekhyun’s eyes watching your every move with an appreciation in them that he didn’t try to hide.

You decided to just go and try and get your bra back, walking out of the room and making your way down the hallway, Soyeon still giggling as Jongdae tried to scold her and get her to hand it over. He was chasing her around the living room when you and Baekhyun entered and he sighed beside you before joining Jongdae. You were totally shocked to find that she had your bra on as a hat. Oh god, why?

You quickly joined in with trying to catch her, because while you knew kids would be kids and you were pretty sure you’d done this yourself at her age, it was still embarrassing. Everyone besides Soyeon froze when you heard a voice coming from the doorway, all of your eyes darting over to find an extremely pissed looking Junmyeon with Soyeon darting out of the room next to him still giggling.

His eyes were darting between you and Baekhyun, both of you half dressed and covered in marks that he could clearly see from the night before.

“What the fuck is going on here?”

It seemed as though none of you dared to move, even Jongdae who hadn’t really done anything wrong was frozen and you heard Baekhyun whisper the words that were going around and around on repeat in your own head.

“Oh, fuck.”


	5. Part 5

Junmyeon’s eyes were flitting over your neck and then to the very visible bite mark that was on Baekhyun’s shoulder. You straightened up, tugging on the hem of the shirt that you were wearing, trying to cover yourself as much as possible, although that apparently had the opposite effect as the collar of the shirt was pulled down, showing off more marks. What the hell was Baekhyun, a wannabe vampire? Though you couldn’t really say much considering it was your teeth marks that were visible on his own skin.

“I’m just gonna… leave you guys…” Jongdae murmured, inching his way over to the door before dashing out as if the hounds of hell were on his heels.

“Are you going to tell me what exactly I just walked in on?” Junmyeon demanded, stepping further into the room. Baekhyun still wasn’t moving and you let out a small sigh, trying to force yourself to relax. Why were you so worried anyway? You were an adult, you could do what you wanted.

“Nothing. We were just trying to get something back from Soyeon.” You told him, as nonchalantly as you could while crossing your arms over your chest. Dammit, why were you so nervous? You felt as though you were about to be scolded by a parent.

“You know perfectly well that’s not what I meant!” Your friend bit out at you and your eyes widened. Why was he so mad?

“Don’t talk to me like that, Kim Junmyeon!” You snapped back, your own annoyance building.

“You!” Junmyeon gritted, pointing a finger at Baekhyun who just stared back at him. “What the fuck did I tell you about touching her?”

“What is your problem?” You demanded and Junmyeon looked back at you, looking a little taken aback at the tone you were using with him, but at this point you were pissed off yourself. “I’m a grown woman, I can do whatever the fuck I want!”

“You’re just going to get hurt, I’m just trying to look out for you!” Junmyeon told you and even though it was nice of him to look out for you, you knew what you were doing.

“As I said, I can do what I want,” You gritted back at him. “You can’t stop me from having one night stands if that’s what I want to do!”

“Wait, what?” Baekhyun finally spoke up, looking over at you with his brows furrowed and you found yourself wondering if maybe that hadn’t been his intention, though you shrugged it off. It had to be, maybe he just wasn’t used to the other side admitting that they didn’t expect more.  

“One night stand?” Junmyeon asked at the same time, looking at you a little judgmentally.

“Well, yes that’s what it was, wasn’t it? I was a little drunk and you were there. It’s not like you’d want more than that anyway, ” You snapped at Baekhyun, not even trying to control your annoyance at this point. You hated people trying to control you and Junmyeon was pushing your buttons. You looked back over at your friend before you continued. “and yes, I said one night stand. I do have them, contrary to what you may believe.”

Junmyeon smoothed out his expression while Baekhyun was staring at you blankly. You rolled your eyes at the both of them, deciding that you’d had enough of this conversation, though you couldn’t help one last parting shot at your friend.

“You’re my friend, not my parent, Jun.” You told him as you walked past him toward the door. “I’m going to shower.”

You stormed out into the hallway, barely glancing at the rather embarrassed looking Jongdae who was hovering just outside. He wordlessly held out your bra that he’d somehow managed to rescue and you took it from him before striding back to Baekhyun’s room and slamming the door none too gently behind you.

//

Baekhyun wasn’t entirely sure how to feel at that exact moment. Junmyeon was still glaring at him from the other side of the room but he was more focused on the things that you’d said before storming off, obviously angry.

“I don’t know what to do with you,” Junmyeon sighed, his glare dropping even though he was still annoyed, judging by the way that he walked over to the couch and rubbed the crease between his brows with his thumb and forefinger as he sat down. “She’s not just another babysitter this time, Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun wasn’t really sure what to say, sitting on the other couch and not looking at his friend. A one-time thing hadn’t actually been his intention this time, though he couldn’t exactly turn around and tell Junmyeon that. He was quite sure that a ‘well I at least wanted to sleep with her a few more times’ wouldn’t go down too well. He also wasn’t about to admit that when you’d basically shot that idea down before he’d even been able to bring it up. That wasn’t about to stop him from trying, but he couldn’t really own up to that either.

“I actually didn’t intend for it to happen…” Baekhyun murmured, deciding that honesty might be the best way to go for now. The incredulous look that Junmyeon sent him told him that he didn’t believe that, however. “I really didn’t!”

“Baekhyun, you’ve had your eye on her since you met her.” He stated bluntly.

“Okay, that’s true but-” Baekhyun started, stopping when he figured he should actually think about what he was going to say. He didn’t want to piss the other man off even more. “I was just doing what you asked me to and keeping an eye on her!”

“That ended up with you taking her home?” Junmyeon asked, a brow raised. “I’m sure that wasn’t a part of what I asked you to do.”

“Well no, but she kissed me!” Baekhyun blurted, not really thinking and just trying to get himself out of trouble at this point.

“I still don’t see how that ended up with her here.”

“She asked me to bring her home?” Baekhyun said, the statement coming out as a question. He was still pretty confused by that turn of events himself, to be honest.

“I’m sorry, what?” Junmyeon asked, a look of disbelief on his face.

“She did!” Baekhyun insisted, actually starting to look a little annoyed himself. He felt like a teenager that was being questioned by a parent and he didn’t like it one bit. “We were dancing and she kissed me and asked me to take her home. What was I going to do, say no?”

“You’re an idiot,” Junmyeon concluded, obviously still annoyed but seemingly done with the conversation as he called out to Jongdae. “I know you’re out there, Jongdae. Get your ass in here.”

Baekhyun figured that no matter what he said, Junmyeon was just going to place all of the blame on his shoulders, so he decided to give up trying to defend himself. He was sure that Junmyeon didn’t believe him in the slightest that it was actually you that had initiated the whole thing.

Jongdae stepped into the room, looking completely unashamed at his eavesdropping and even shooting Baekhyun a little smirk that screamed he’d enjoyed seeing him so flustered. Probably because it never happened. Baekhyun didn’t do awkward and flustered. Even Baekhyun himself was confused as to why that was happening this time around but he wasn’t going to put much thought into it. He’d rather pretend that it wasn’t.

“Sit,” Junmyeon told Jongdae shortly, waiting until he’d sat on the couch besides Baekhyun. Both men focused their attention on him as he continued. “We need to talk about BamBam.”

Baekhyun had completely forgotten about why he was supposed to be keeping an eye on you, but he straightened a little in his seat at the mention of it. Jongdae remained completely relaxed, though looking a little baffled due to not having any idea what Junmyeon was referring to.

“BamBam?” He asked, looking between Baekhyun and Junmyeon questioningly.

“Oh, right. You weren’t there,” Junmyeon stated, focusing on Jongdae as he explained the events of the night before.

“Why was one of JB’s guys at one of our clubs?” Jongdae asked no one in particular, his mind working to try and piece things together.

“Apparently, he’s a student and she invited him for her birthday,” Junmyeon told the both of them. Jongdae didn’t seem bothered by that bit of information though Baekhyun scowled, obviously not pleased. “He’s her partner on a project.”

“Do you believe that?” Baekhyun asked him, wanting to know Junmyeon’s thoughts on the situation before he allowed his own to take over.

“Do I think he’s her project partner? Yes. Do I think that’s all there is to it? No.” Junmyeon told him bluntly, looking a little frustrated.

“So what do we do about it?” Jongdae asked him, not seeing an easy solution to the problem. Apparently, Junmyeon thought that there wasn’t one either.

“There isn’t anything we can do, really,” he said with a sigh, running a hand through his hair. “We talked to him but if he is up to something he’s doing a good job of keeping it to himself. We’ll have to dig more because I definitely don’t think that’s all there is to it. But for the moment we’ll just have to keep an eye on things until we figure out what he’s up to and why.”

Baekhyun wasn’t sure why his thoughts went straight to you and he couldn’t stop himself from asking about you. The fact that you had a member from a rival mafia so close to you made him feel uneasy.

“What about her?” Baekhyun asked Junmyeon. “I don’t like the fact that he’s so close to her. Something doesn’t seem right about this.”

“No, I know,” Junmyeon sighed. “Especially not when she’s working for you and your history with JB.”

Baekhyun had thought the same thing. JB definitely did not like Baekhyun given the fact that Baekhyun had slept with his ex-girlfriend. Once. It had ended their relationship, however. Baekhyun just couldn’t figure out if JB was actually up to something and why he’d want to get close to you, of all people. It seemed like a stupid and petty reason, to Baekhyun at least. Especially when you were just the babysitter, but he couldn’t get the uneasy feeling to go away.

“So what do we do about her?” He questioned, trying to organize his thoughts in an attempt for things to just make sense.

“What can we do?” Junmyeon asked with a small shrug. “There isn’t much. I think the only option is for someone to keep an eye on her, just to make sure.”

Baekhyun nodded, figuring that he was right. He still didn’t like any of this, however.

“Who, though?” Jongdae asked, having been paying attention to the conversation quietly. “Won’t he know who we are and if he sees one of us following her around we won’t get anything.”

“I’ll get Sehun to do it. I don’t think he knows who Sehun is, he’s rarely seen in regards to us and he didn’t seem to know who he was at the club,” Junmyeon responded and Baekhyun nodded in agreement that Sehun was most likely their best bet. He was the tech guy and he rarely went out with them. “I’ll see if Kyungsoo and Jongin can try and get any information on if they’re planning anything and if they are, what that might be.”

Baekhyun knew that he was right and that there wasn’t anything else to be done, but he still didn’t want you being dragged into any of this. He couldn’t pinpoint exactly when he’d started to believe that you weren’t a part of any of this but he had, most likely thanks to Junmyeon’s insistence than anything else. He didn’t tell Junmyeon that he had every intention of trying to convince you to stay away from BamBam, knowing that the other man probably wouldn’t approve of that course of action. It couldn’t hurt to try though, right?

//

A few days had passed since the confrontation with Junmyeon in Baekhyun’s living room. Junmyeon had already left before you’d gotten out of the shower and you left not long after, deciding that leaving sooner rather than later was probably the best course of action.

You’d expected things to calm down between you and Baekhyun in the days that followed, now that you’d acted on the attraction that you obviously had towards each other, but you’d been wrong about that. He was flirting with you and touching you much more openly which was still having as much of an effect on you as it had before, if not more. You’d figured the next morning that maybe giving into it would make things easier, but instead, you found yourself thinking about it way more than you’d like to admit.

You’d constantly found your mind drifting to the way that his soft lips had felt against yours, the tight grip of his fingers as he’d held onto you, the way that his bare chest had felt pressed against yours.

You were just as attracted to him as you had been when you’d drunkenly decided to act on that attraction. If you were honest with yourself, you were probably more attracted now. It had backfired and you were still struggling with yourself and whether you actually wanted to act on it again. Baekhyun’s actions told you that he did. At least, that’s what you thought.

You stared blankly at the screen of your laptop, completely forgetting about the fact that you were in the library and supposed to be working on your project. You caught yourself thinking about the way his hot tongue had brushed against your skin, the pleasurable pain that you hadn’t been able to get enough of when he’d sunk his teeth into the skin of your neck. How you had the best orgasm of your life when he’d gripped your throat as you came, leaving you unable to breathe and your mind in a haze as you’d been able to do nothing but feel.

“So, I’m curious,” BamBam spoke up from beside you and you jumped a little in your seat, having completely forgotten where you were and that you weren’t alone. You were blushing as you looked over at him thanks to the direction your mind had taken and you willed it to die down as you looked over at him. “How did you manage to get the VIP section at a place like Electric Kiss for your birthday?”

“Oh,” you told him, focusing your attention on him a little more. He seemed genuinely curious. “I know the owner.”

“You know Kim Junmyeon?” He asked, a look on his face that you couldn’t quite place and you found yourself wondering how he knew your best friend.

“He’s my best friend. You know him?”

BamBam shook his head slightly with a small smile that somehow didn’t come across as genuine this time. “Not really, more know of him.”

You nodded slightly once again, deciding to accept that piece of information. He owned a lot of nightclubs in the city so it wasn’t that much of a stretch. You focused back on your laptop, deciding to get a little more work done as you’d have to leave in the next 10 minutes. Baekhyun had picked Soyeon up from school today but he was busy for the evening so you had to go over.

“You seem to know a lot of… unusual people.”

Looking over at him with a frown, you gave up on trying to work and closed your laptop, focusing your attention on his face. Something about the way he’d said the word unusual told you he meant something different, but you couldn’t figure out what that was exactly.

“What are you talking about?”

“Junmyeon, for starters. How did you meet him?” He asked you, watching you intently. You felt slightly uncomfortable at all the questioning though you couldn’t put your finger on why. They were perfectly normal questions.

“I’ve known him for years. I met him on campus a few years ago, why?” You demanded to know as you started to pack up your things, deciding that it was time for you to leave.

“Just curious,” he told you, a small smile forming on his face. “I met some of your friends at the club too, they seem like a bit of an… odd bunch, I guess.”

You stopped packing away your things as you looked at him. As far as you were aware, the only friends of yours that he’d met at the club were your college friends, you didn’t really have many more outside of them, and you weren’t exactly considered an unusual group. The only other person that you’d been aware of him meeting that night had been Sehun, who for some reason had been spending more time with you over the past few days you wouldn’t exactly consider him a friend. Not yet, anyway.

“What are you talking about?” you questioned, your furrowed brows showing your confusion as he began to pack away his own things.

“Nothing, as I said I met some of your friends. I didn’t picture them for the type you’d choose to be around,” he said to you with a small shrug. “Especially the guy I saw you dancing with. He seemed a little… dangerous. Your type?”

You felt your face flush at the mention of Baekhyun and decided that you were done with his questions for the day, especially now that he’d brought that up.

“Ok, I have to go.” You stated simply as you picked up your bag. However, you stopped when BamBam called out to you quietly.

“I’ll drive you!” he told you with a cheery smile and you found yourself accepting. He seemed as though he was done with the questions and you’d had a long day. You didn’t want to make your way across the city by public transport.

You followed him out of the building, once again finding your thoughts drifting to Baekhyun and the fact that you were actually looking forward to seeing him. Forcing the feeling away, you tried to focus on other things and started up a small conversation with the man walking beside you. It wasn’t good to allow yourself to feel anything toward a guy like Baekhyun, and you weren’t going to.  

//

You walked into Baekhyun’s apartment a little while later, slipping your shoes off by the door and making your way into the living room. Baekhyun and Soyeon were both sitting on the couch, the little girl snuggled into her father’s side as they watched a children’s show together.

“You’re here early,” Baekhyun said, looking over the back of the couch at you and you found yourself smiling a little at the way he had his arm around his daughter, holding her close to him.

“Someone dropped me off,” you replied simply and Soyeon finally noticed your presence, scrambling off of the sofa and running over to give you a hug. The both of you had grown a little closer since you’d started taking care of her and it made you happy to see the girl actually excited to see you.

“Do you want something to eat?” You asked her once she released you from her grip. You were hungry and didn’t want to wait until dinner. The girl’s eyes brightened at the thought of a snack and you chuckled before she even answered you, knowing what she was going to say.

“Yes please!” She answered you, nodding happily at the thought of food. She was always hungry, it seemed. She rarely turned down something to eat.

“Okay then,” you told her, giving her a gentle nudge back toward the couch. “How about you sit there and I’ll sort out some snacks and we can watch a movie before dinner?”

She climbed back up onto the couch, chattering happily about which movie she wanted to watch. Apparently, her choice for today was Mulan, something which you were actually quite open to. You liked the annoying little dragon.

“Do you want anything?” You asked Baekhyun who simply shook his head at you in response. Turning on your heel, you left the room and walked down the hall to the kitchen to raid the cupboards. You pulled open the fridge, trying to decide what to put together when Baekhyun spoke up from the doorway, startling you. Why was he so quiet?

“Who dropped you off?” He asked you, tilting his head curiously when you looked over at him. You shut the door with a small exhale, moving back to the cupboards and pulling one open.

“BamBam did,” you said, reaching up to grab a bag of chips and going to get some bowls to put some in.

“You need to stay away from him,” Baekhyun told you and you turned around, a little taken aback by his sudden declaration. He had a scowl on his face and you quickly found yourself mirroring it.

“What? Why?” You demanded, putting the bowls on the counter and turning to face him with your arms crossed in front of you.

“He’s trouble,” Baekhyun stated simply, clearly thinking that was the only explanation he needed to give for his sudden demand.

“You don’t even know him, how did you come to that conclusion?” You asked him. You weren’t about to give in without a fight, especially when you had no clue where this suddenly came from. What was his problem?

“It’s complicated, okay?” He told you, running a hand through his hair in agitation. He was clearly annoyed that you weren’t simply doing as he asked. Not that he really asked in the first place. “I know him better than you think and I don’t like you being around him.”

“You know him?” You asked, frowning even more at that little bit of information. Your mind went back to the conversation that you’d had with BamBam earlier. He’d mentioned Junmyeon but not Baekhyun. None of this seemed to fit. You refused to think about it for now, more annoyed that once again somebody in your life was trying to tell you what to do. “What, are you jealous or something?”

“What?” Baekhyun asked with a slightly incredulous laugh. “Why the fuck would I be jealous?”

“I don’t know, you tell me?” You snapped at him, feeling a slight sting at just how absurd he seemed to find the idea of it. You gave up trying to push your anger back down. “You think that because we slept together once you suddenly own me and can tell me who I can and can’t talk to?”

“It’s not like that!” Baekhyun shouted suddenly and you jumped a little at the rise in volume. “Why can’t you just fucking listen to me?”

“I don’t have to listen to you!” You shouted back at him. “You’re not my dad, you’re not my boyfriend! You’re my boss, you have no right to tell me what to do!”

Baekhyun glared at you for a moment with his jaw clenched, before turning on his heel to storm out of the kitchen.

“Whatever, don’t tell me that I didn’t fucking warn you.”

You rolled your eyes at his parting words, breathing deeply to try and control your emotions. You turned back to the counter, busying yourself by finding more food and sorting them into bowls to bring back into the living room.

You were surprised when Sehun stepped into the kitchen just as the front door slammed loudly, Baekhyun obviously leaving without bothering to tell you.

“What are you doing here?” You questioned Sehun as you began to pick up some of the bowls. He came to help you and you smiled at him in thanks.

“I have some work being done on my apartment and it’s too loud. I was going to go to Junmyeon’s but it’s just as hectic there at the moment. I figured coming here was my best option,”

“Wanna join us for a movie? We’re watching Mulan today,” You asked him with a small chuckle. Since hanging out with him a bit at the club, you’d actually spent a bit more time with him over the last few days and you found that you liked Sehun a lot.

He might look a little intimidating but he was actually very kind and funny. You’d never felt uncomfortable around him and he’d actually kept you company a couple of times while you’d been doing some of your work. He’d join you at a cafe and work on his own laptop. You both enjoyed the quietness and it was nice to have someone with you as you worked.

“Mulan?” He asked, trying to place which movie it was before he perked up, his eyes brightening a little. “The one with the dragon? I love that annoying dragon!”

You laughed as you and Sehun carried the snacks into the living room, Soyeon launching herself at her favorite uncle as soon as you stepped into the room. He balanced the bowls that he was holding expertly, obviously used to it.

“Soyeon, can you set up the movie?” You asked her as a way to get her to let go of him, which she did happily as she ran over to sit on the couch with the remote control. Someone had taught her how to use the Netflix app pretty well so she had no problem finding the movie as you and Sehun put all of the bowls on the coffee table.

A little while later, Soyeon was totally engrossed in the film, barely even blinking as she sang along to the songs. You’d been struggling to focus, however, your mind drifting back to the argument that you’d had with Baekhyun. You were a little hurt that he’d found the idea of being jealous over you so funny, you couldn’t lie to yourself about that. Though you were also still angry at the fact that he’d thought he could tell you what to do and he hadn’t even bothered to give you a proper explanation as to why.

“What’s up?” Sehun murmured from beside you and you realized that you were staring at a spot in the corner of the screen with an obvious frown on your face.

“It’s nothing,” you told him, forcing a small smile. You glanced down at Soyeon, who was snuggled up to Sehun, eyes still fixed on the screen.

“You know you can talk to me, right?” Sehun asked you and you nodded at him. He gave you a small, encouraging smile as he continued. “I might actually be able to help, you know.”

Just like that, you found yourself blurting out everything that had happened since you’d met Baekhyun. The flirting, the touching, the confusing behavior. You mentioned how he’d remembered your birthday and about the gifts that he’d gotten for you. How kind he’d been that day and when you’d met him for ice cream. You even found yourself confessing to the attraction that you felt for the man and the end result of it. When you finished telling him about the argument in the kitchen, you felt much lighter having finally gotten it all out to somebody. You’d chosen not to tell Sehun how hurt you were by Baekhyun’s reaction to you implying that he was jealous, though you were sure he’d picked up on that anyway. Sehun was quite perceptive.

“Okay, wow,” Sehun started, a little taken aback at just how open you’d been with him. You were feeling slightly embarrassed about it yourself, but it seemed like once you’d opened your mouth you hadn’t been able to stop everything from pouring out of you. Your eyes widened when you realized that you’d just spilled your soul to him when he could tell literally anyone. He seemed to pick up on your worry, however. “Don’t worry, I won’t say anything.”

“Thank you,” You mumbled, not willing to meet his eyes. It was quiet for a moment before he spoke up again and you looked back over at him.

“You know, he’s not good with showing that he cares right? But he does care, you should go easier on him.”  

You looked at him as though he’d grown an extra limb. “What do you mean?”

“He’s an idiot,” Sehun told you with a slight lift of his shoulders and you couldn’t help but chuckle. “He’s just looking out for you but doing it the wrong way.”

“I’m not so sure about that,” You told him, focusing back on the TV. You still didn’t understand why he’d acted that way, but you were sure it wasn’t because he cared about you, not when the mere idea of him being jealous of your friendship with BamBam had been so funny to him. Besides, he had no reason to worry in the first place.

“I am,” Sehun mumbled beside you, also focusing back on the movie. You chose to ignore it for the simple reason that he was wrong. He had to be.

//

You climbed out of the passenger seat of Junmyeon’s car before going to get a rather excited Soyeon out of the back. He’d decided that he wanted to spend some time with you, to apologize for making you so mad at him the morning after your birthday. You’d ignored him for a while, refusing to talk to him before he finally convinced you to go to the cat shelter with him so he could get a kitten. He’d promised to let you choose and you loved cats, so you weren’t about to turn him down.

As soon as the little girl was out of the car she was off, running over to Junmyeon and excitedly asking him lots of questions all about cats and kittens and if she’d be able to play with them. You sighed quietly as you shut the door, hoping that spending some time at the shelter would improve your mood a little. You’d been avoiding Baekhyun as much as possible since the argument, figuring that a bit of distance between the both of you would be best. It was harder than you thought it’d be, even though Baekhyun seemed to know what you were doing and went along with it.

“So, why exactly are you getting a kitten?” You asked as you walked up beside Junmyeon who pressed the button on his keys to lock the car, Soyeon holding onto his hand happily as you walked to the shelter.

“I’ve been stressed. Someone told me that animals help with stress and I like cats,” He told you simply as he pushed open the door. It wasn’t a large shelter. It was family run, just a little bit outside of the city. You wondered why he’d picked this one when there were plenty more closer to home.

You noticed the girl behind the counter when she greeted your little group and you didn’t miss the fact that Junmyeon called her by name. You figured there was more to this story than he was telling you, but you decided to let it slide for now.

Junmyeon spoke to her a little while Soyeon stayed beside you, practically vibrating with excitement at the thought of being able to play with all of the kittens. When the girl laughed at something he said and reached out to touch his arm, you didn’t miss the slight pinkness in his cheeks and you smirked. There was definitely more to this visit than he was letting on and you’d be teasing him mercilessly about it later.

You spent a good hour or so playing with all of the kittens, watching Junmyeon attempt to flirt with the girl that worked there, while simultaneously keeping an eye on Soyeon. Your eyes widened and you froze in the middle of petting the fluffy little tabby cat on your lap when she spoke from beside you.

“Can I have one?”

If there was one thing that you’d learned about Soyeon, she wasn’t used to being told no. You thought of the best way of getting yourself out of it while hopefully avoiding a full-blown tantrum.

“You’ll have to ask your daddy, princess. We can’t just bring one home without asking him first,” You told her softly, resuming your petting as the kitten purred.  You had a feeling that she was about to demand that you call him, so you called out to Junmyeon, lifting the little kitten in your hands.

“Can you get this one? I like this one,” You told him, scratching the little ball of fluff under the chin with your finger.

He looked between you and the girl playing with one of the kittens beside him. She had a soft smile on her face as she watched the kitten chase after the feather she was waving around.

“I know I said you could choose, but I want that one,” He told you, pointing at the one that the girl was playing with. You found yourself smirking again, shaking your head slightly. He was so obvious.

“Oh, really?” She asked him happily. “This one is my favorite!”

You went back to playing with the kittens, watching from the corner of your eye as Junmyeon spoke to her enthusiastically about the kitten he’d picked as he followed her out to sort out the paperwork. You knew that he wasn’t really here for a pet and you had a feeling he’d be making more excuses to come back. However, what he’d said about animals being good for stress was apparently true as you felt much more relaxed than you had in quite a while. You weren’t even that bothered at the prospect of having to go home and pretend to ignore Baekhyun’s entire existence again. That’s what you kept telling yourself, anyway.


	6. Part 6

You took a sip of your coffee, shaking your head slightly at Fei who had not shut up for a single second about Kai from the moment that you’d settled yourself onto a chair in the coffee shop. It turned out that you hadn’t been the only one to leave with someone else that night, Fei having left with Kai, something that she usually didn’t do. She was one of the much more conservative ones in your little group.

Your mind drifted to Baekhyun, again. It kept happening more the longer you’d gone on trying to avoid him and you wondered why things had to be so hard for you. Fei had no problem admitting that she liked Kai, was very attracted to him and trying to get advice from all of you on the best way to go about that. You, on the other hand, were keeping everything buried as deeply inside of yourself as you possibly could.

This was the first opportunity that you’d had to see the girls since your birthday, each of you being too busy with your studies and jobs to find the time. You loved them, but you wished that they’d change the subject to something else. It was silly of you, but Fei’s openness in regards to Kai frustrated you, mainly because you couldn’t find it in yourself to be able to do the same.

You missed him. It wasn’t something that you’d thought you’d be willing to admit, well… ever. But here you were, finally owning up to that one small fact. The distance between the both of you was your fault, you knew that, but you weren’t sure what to do about it. You’d grown used to the flirting, the touching and the cheeky smiles after he’d brush his lips against your skin when he thought nobody was watching and you really did miss it.

You blew out a frustrated breath, your friends still talking animatedly around you as you took another sip of the hot, bitter liquid in the cup you were holding. The fact that you were feeling the way that you did made your mind go to places that you weren’t ready for. It told you that you liked him and that wasn’t something that you wanted to admit. Baekhyun wasn’t the kind of guy that it was okay for you to like, not in that way but no matter how hard you’d tried to stop it, it had happened anyway. Going home with him that night had been a bad idea.

“So when are you going to tell us about the guy that you went home with? I saw you leave with him.”

The question pulled you back to reality and you glanced to your right, Dana watching you intently with a huge grin and a glint in her eye that told you it was going to be very hard to not tell her anything. You blinked at her for a moment, your mind scrambling for something to tell her.

“Baekhyun? He’s… Kai’s friend?” You answered unsurely, wondering if you could get away with that very short answer. However, this was Dana and she wasn’t about to let it go when there were juicy stories about your sex life to be had.

“Nice try, but you know that’s not what I meant,” She told you with a small snort, leaning forward to put her elbow on the table and her chin on the palm of her hand as she watched you expectantly. “You went home with him, I saw you leave! How was it?”

You panicked a little at the direct question, blurting out the one thing that you probably shouldn’t have.

“I’m not talking to you about my sex life.”

“Aha! So you did fuck him!” Sohee piped up excitedly, grinning at you from next to Dana. You’d been pretty sure she wasn’t following the conversation but apparently you’d been wrong about that.

“I never said that!” You shot back at her, despite knowing that it was useless. You had basically just owned up to it.

“Oh, please. No one said anything about sex that was all you,” Fei said, a glint that you recognized coming to her eyes and you knew exactly what she was about to say and that she’d put up a fight to get what she wanted. “Oh, he’s friends with Kai, right? We should go on a double date!”

“That is not a good idea!” You told her emphatically, letting out a small groan when she looked at you with determination seeping from every pore.

“What? Why not? He seems nice enough and you must like him if you went home with him!”

“I don’t want to date him, I was just horny, okay?” You burst out a little too loudly, gaining a few looks from other people in the coffee shop. You slunk down in your seat a little, while Dana and Fei laughed at your rapidly reddening cheeks. Sohee just looked a little exasperated.

“Please, we all know that even though you’re a horny drunk, you still only go home with the ones you actually like,” Fei told you bluntly and you glared at her. You were sure you’d be able to get out of this whole situation by simply telling them that he was your boss, but you weren’t really willing to do that.

“That’s not true,” You protested, more out of principle than anything else. She was right but you were still feeling quite confused over things with Baekhyun and what you actually wanted at this point.  

“If you say so,” Dana said before taking a sip of her drink. “So what’s he like?”

“Uh, well…” You started before stopping to drink a bit of your coffee and wondering how honest you should be. “He can be a bit of an asshole, I guess? But he’s really good looking and when he tries he can be quite sweet? Especially with his daughter.”

“He has a kid?” Dana asked you, tilting her head slightly while you cursed in your head. You hadn’t meant to bring that up. If anyone would be able to put two and two together it would be Dana.

“Yeah, he does,” You stated simply, hoping she’d forget about it.

“So if he can be nice and sweet and he obviously has no problem settling down given that he has a kid, why don’t you wanna date him?” Fei asked you curiously.

“Are you forgetting the part where I also said that he’s an asshole?” You demanded. “He can be rude, he’s a born flirt and he doesn’t know how to keep his hands to himself!”

“You love it. Or you wouldn’t have left with him that night,” Dana cut in.

“Oh, shut up,” Was all you said as you pulled your phone out of the pocket to check the time. You weren’t about to admit anything. “I have to go. I need to pick Soyeon up from school.”

You got up from the table, hugging each of your friends goodbye and promising to meet up again soon. You groaned internally as you pushed the door to the cafe open and Fei called out to you that she’d sort out the double date. You’d just have to get out of it when the time came.

//

Soyeon was chattering along happily about her day as you walked into the park after you’d collected her from school. You had to walk through the park to the other side to get to the play park, which was your destination, but you’d come to enjoy these weekly visits to the park. Soyeon had also, insisting that you bring her at least once a week, so you had set aside a day to take her.

You listened to her tell you about her day, especially the finger painting she did, completely unable to get a word in as she babbled on. You didn’t mind though, simply humming to let her know that she had your attention as you walked along the pathways, her small hand in yours.  You were about halfway through the park when you heard someone call out to you and you turned to see BamBam jogging up to you with a big smile.

“Hey! I wasn’t expecting to see you here,” He greeted you before his eyes landed on Soyeon, who had moved to stand behind you a little with a glare directed at him. “And who is this?”

He held his hand out to Soyeon with a smile to introduce himself and she slapped it away before moving further behind your legs. BamBam looked a little surprised and you tried not to laugh.

“This is Soyeon, she doesn’t really like strangers, I’m sorry,” You informed him with a small smile and he shrugged it off, focusing back on you instead.

“It’s alright,” He said with a small laugh. “I’ve never seen you here before, do you come here a lot?”

“Um, not until just recently,” You answered him, glancing down at Soyeon who was tugging on your hand as you continued. “We’ve been coming for a few weeks now, once a week after school.”

“Can we go home?” Soyeon asked you when you’d finished, pointedly ignoring the man that you were talking to.

“Why? We haven’t been to the park yet?” You asked her, brows furrowed.

“I don’t want to go to the park, I want to go home!”

You nodded with a small sigh. Demanding Soyeon was back and you knew that if you didn’t do what she wanted then it would escalate into a full-blown tantrum.

“Oh? On the same day?” BamBam asked you, smiling at Soyeon who just glared back at him while still pulling on your hand.

“Yeah, usually,” You told him, trying to stop Soyeon from pulling at you before you resigned yourself to the fact that you’d have to leave. “Sorry, I’m going to take her home. You really don’t want to see what will happen if I don’t.”

BamBam laughed at that, bidding you goodbye and telling you that he’d probably see you around. You gave him a small wave as you turned around to take a now very sulky Soyeon home.

//

Baekhyun climbed out of the car, rolling his shoulders after the long drive out of the city to a derelict building in the middle of nowhere. It had been a long day spent in a dingy bar with Kyungsoo and one of Jongin’s girls trying to get information out of the guy that was now in the trunk of the car. Baekhyun and Chen had gone in case they were needed, which it turns out they actually had been. Really, only one of them needed to go but they were both bored. They’d picked up Chanyeol on the way, needing his own expertise to dispose of the guy.

“Are you my appendix? Because I don’t understand how you work but this feeling in my stomach makes me want to take you out? Really Chen, out of everything you could have said to her you chose that?” Chanyeol asked, laughing the same way he had randomly the entire way to the derelict house far outside of the city.

“I still say it was better than Baekhyun. At least I asked her out, Baekhyun just asked her to ride his dick.” Chen grunted as he helped Baekhyun remove the very dead body from the trunk of the car.

“At least I’m honest and let her know that’s all I want from her,” Baekhyun replied nonchalantly.

“You really are a disgusting human being, you know that?” Chen responded, Chanyeol still laughing as he played with his lighter, flicking the flame on and off. Kyungsoo simply rolled his eyes as they all made their way into the house that was barely standing. It wouldn’t be by the time Chanyeol was finished.

“You’re both idiots,” Kyungsoo stated bluntly. “The only way that Krystal would be into you is if you somehow grow a pair of tits and lose your dicks and you’ve been told that countless times.”

Baekhyun and Chen dropped the body on the floorboards of what they thought used to be the living room. It didn’t really matter anyway.

“My tits are bigger than yours at least. May as well stop trying,” Chen said, eyeing Baekhyun’s chest over the poor dead man on the floor between them.

“Size doesn’t matter!” Baekhyun shot back at him. Chanyeol broke down laughing once again as he set down the gas cans he’d brought with him.

“I’m so done with all of you. I’ll go and get the rest of the gasoline, I need to get away from these idiots.” Kyungsoo stated, marching back out the door as Baekhyun and Chen continued to argue over who had the biggest pecs.

“Why are both of you even trying so hard? I thought you were both already totally whipped or am I missing something here?” Chanyeol asked them, beginning to pour gasoline on and around the body as the other two moved away. He figured it was time to intervene before they actually got into a fistfight. It wouldn’t be the first time they’d done it over something this stupid.

“Oh, you’re missing a lot,” Kyungsoo said as he re-entered the room, handing the gasoline over to Chanyeol before pointing at Baekhyun. “Idiot number 1 can’t keep it in his pants and is pining after a girl that he claims he isn’t interested in and isn’t interested in him and the only thing between them is the urge to fuck each other like rabbits. He’s in the denial phase.”

“What do you mean the denial phase? I don’t like her!” Baekhyun interjected loudly while Chen snickered beside him, much too amused at Kyungsoo’s blunt honesty. His laughter was cut short when Kyungsoo proceeded to point at him instead.

“Whilst idiot number 2 likes a materialistic little rich girl that is completely unattainable, way out of his league and doesn’t even know that he exists.” Kyungsoo finished, crossing his arms over his chest as Chen stuttered out his protests.

“Well… It’s better than your ex-girlfriend being a Japanese rockstar that left you to move to another country,” Chanyeol said with a small pout, causing all three of the other men in the room to sigh in unison.

“Don’t even go there Chanyeol, don’t even get me started on you,” Kyungsoo told him, crossing his arms over his chest. He heaved a sigh before continuing. “It’s been a long day. I need a fucking drink.”

Baekhyun and Chen followed behind him, bidding goodbye to Chanyeol before following Kyungsoo. Chanyeol could do the rest on his own, fire was his thing after all.

Baekhyun was quiet as he followed the others two to the car, Chen arguing with Kyungsoo about what was so perfect about his little crush, whining something about philanthropy loudly,  while Baekhyun tried to drown him out. He wasn’t in denial… was he? He shook his head, sliding into the passenger seat behind Kyungsoo while Chen climbed into the back. Kyungsoo wasn’t the only one that needed a drink.

//

Baekhyun couldn’t sleep. He’d been tossing and turning in his bed for what felt like hours, his mind constantly going to you. He didn’t think it’d be this much of a challenge to give you what you wanted. After the night where he’d brought you back here, fucked you on this very bed, you’d done everything in your power to put some distance between the both of you.

He’d figured that it’d be fine, it wasn’t something new to him. He wasn’t the type for any kind of consistent relationship, not even ones based solely on sex. The longer it went on though, with you barely speaking two words to him and refused to even be in the same room as him alone for longer than ten seconds, the more he began to question himself.

During the day, it wasn’t so much of a problem. He kept himself busy and stopped his mind from wandering down paths he wasn’t ready to venture down yet. The nights were a totally different story and a whole other issue. Instead of sleeping, his mind would remind him of everything that had occurred in that damn bed, in vivid detail.

He’d constantly think of how soft your skin had felt under his fingers, the way that you’d tasted as he’d marked you with his teeth and his tongue, almost as if he was trying to claim you as his own though you both knew that was far from the truth. His mind kept going, reminding him of just how wrecked and beautiful you’d looked beneath him as he’d fucked you into his mattress. The whimpers and moans that had left your parted lips as you’d clung to him, your thighs gripping him tightly as you’d come undone beneath him.

His dick twitched and he groaned before sitting up in his bed and reaching for his phone on the bedside table to check the time to see that it was 2am. He let out a small huff, going to put it back from where he’d gotten it before he stopped. His hand had become his best friend recently and he was getting sick of it. It wasn’t enough, he wanted you. The idea of having to get himself off again, while he thought of you, didn’t appeal to him in the slightest.

He nibbled on his bottom lip for a moment while he stared at his phone, his fingers almost moving of their own accord when he unlocked it and opened the contact list until he got to your name. He pressed the call button before he could talk himself out of it.

“Hello?”

Your sleepy voice in his ear, husky from sleep, almost had him groaning again. He hadn’t thought this through, so he wasn’t sure what he could say that might actually get you to come over. To his surprise, though, he didn’t really have to say much.

“I need you to come over,” He started quietly, brain working rapidly to try and think of some excuse to get you here. You didn’t give him a chance to actually come up with anything, however.

“Is everything alright?” You asked him, the sleepiness leaving your voice as you began to speak rapidly in his ear. “Is Soyeon okay? Are you okay? Why are you so quiet and not saying anything? I’ll be over as quick as I can!”

A small frown had formed on his face at your babbling and he looked at his phone when you hung up, looking a little bemused before he simply shrugged a little. He’d gotten what he wanted, you were coming over. You’d probably be a bit peeved when you got here to find out that nothing was actually wrong, but he was sure he’d be able to change that.

You had called a taxi before quickly getting yourself ready, if you could even call it that. You’d simply changed out of your pajamas and threw your hair up in a messy pile on top of your head before pulling a jacket on over your simple sweats and a tee. You made sure you had your keys, phone and money before slipping on your shoes and bolting out of the door.

You entered Baekhyun’s apartment in a rush, remembering to slip your shoes off by the door before padding your way quietly along the hall to Soyeon’s room. Considering the ridiculous time, you were surprised to find the place so quiet. Surely if he’d called you at this time of the morning, something must be wrong but the stillness in the apartment seemed to say otherwise.

You quietly pushed open the door to Soyeon’s room, frowning when you noticed her curled up form in the middle of her bed, fast asleep with one of her teddy bears clutched to her chest. You closed the door again quietly, being careful not to wake her and you found yourself standing outside her bedroom door for a moment while you thought on what to do.

You figured that Baekhyun was in his room and you had a choice between going to check on him, in case there was actually something wrong with him, or going to the spare room to go back to sleep. You decided on getting more sleep. Baekhyun was a grown man and could take care of himself and if you were being totally honest, just the thought of going into his bedroom brought back memories from the last time you were there.

You made your way quietly down the hall, once again feeling tiredness wash over you. You didn’t notice the door to Baekhyun’s room opening as you walked past, much too caught up in your desire to get back into a nice, warm bed. You let out a surprised yelp when you felt a hand wrap around your wrist before yanking you through the door to Baekhyun’s room, though you soon relaxed a bit when you realized that it was him who had pulled you in there. You stiffened again slightly when he wrapped his arms around you from behind, burying his face into the crook of your neck.

“Baekhyun? What’s going on?” You demanded, your body melting against his slightly as his lips brushed fleetingly against your skin. “Soyeon is fine, why am I here?”

He took a moment before answering you, his lips lingering on your skin for a second before he nuzzled his nose into your neck. When he spoke, it was as a barely audible whisper and if his face hadn’t been so close to your ear you probably wouldn’t have heard him.

“I missed you.”

He tensed almost immediately, his grip around your waist tightening and you found yourself wondering if he’d actually meant to say that to you. He released a slow breath, the hotness of it fanning against your skin and making you shiver slightly as he relaxed once again and you found yourself leaning back into him when his lips found your skin once more.

You’d missed him too, no matter how reluctant you were to admit it. You mentally chastised yourself, knowing that you’d already given into him before he’d even really done anything. How was he able to do this to you so easily?

You turned in his arms to face him, his arms loosening their grip a little to allow you to do so and his head lifting to look down at you. When your eyes locked with his, he was looking back at you with something in their depths that you’d never seen from him before, something that seemed almost soft. Before you could decipher it, he moved, his lips capturing yours.

They moved against yours gently, almost as though he was trying to show you that he meant the words that he’d spoken to you. You found yourself melting against him once again, his arms still wrapped around you, holding you against his warm body. You let out a soft sigh when he brushed his tongue against your bottom lip, giving him the access that he wanted. His lips against yours became almost bruising as soon as his tongue passed your lips, though you kissed him back just as roughly, the both of you giving in to the desires that you’d been denied for the past few weeks. Your hands moved to his chest, gripping the fabric of his shirt tightly between your fingers as his hands moved to your hips before moving higher, his fingers slipping beneath your shirt in his quest to feel your skin.

A small gasp escaped you when the rings that he still wore brushed against you, a shiver running through you due to the cold metal. That small sound seemed to trigger something within him, his kiss seeming to grow more desperate, a feeling which you couldn’t help but return. He began to strip the clothes from your body, your own hands pulling at the fabric of his own clothes that were separating you from him as the both of you stumbled towards the bed.

Baekhyun’s mouth left yours as you both unceremoniously tumbled onto the bed, panting breaths coming from the both of you. Your mind was a whirlwind of thoughts as his bare chest pressed against your own, the both of you left in nothing but your panties and boxers, his lips sucking at the skin of your throat as small moans escaped you.

You were tired of avoiding him, of lying to yourself and living in denial. You wanted him, his kiss, his touch. Even his over the top flirting and his teasing. While you knew that he probably hadn’t meant what he’d said, you’d definitely missed him. You liked him and while you weren’t ready to admit it to anyone else, you were ready to admit it to yourself.

His lips traveled along your throat, down across your collarbones and to your chest where he wasted no time in taking one of your nipples between his lips, sucking on the sensitive bud as your hands moved to his shoulders, your nails digging into his skin slightly.  His mouth left a wet trail across your skin as he moved to the other breast, your nails digging into his skin harder as he wrapped his lips around it, sucking as his hands moved to your hips. His fingers slid into the sides of your panties, pulling them down as you raised your hips slightly and he released your nipple with a small pop, moving backward to completely remove them.

You pulled him back down to you quickly, not wanting to lose the feeling of his skin against yours. He let out a quiet, breathless chuckle before you caught his lips again, your tongue moving to brush against his. It didn’t take long for him to take over, his mouth dominating yours once again, his lips moving against yours roughly, almost possessively. Your hands moved to his chest, fingertips brushing against his skin and you nipped at his bottom lip when you reached his destination. You tugged at his boxers the best you could from your position before he moved to help you. You reached for him as soon as they were gone, wrapping your fingers around his length. His lips, slightly swollen from your rough kisses, parted with a small groan.

“Someone’s eager,” He commented, his voice low and slightly husky as you continued to stroke him. One of his hands moved between your parted thighs, brushing along your slit before rubbing against your clit gently. “And you’re so wet. So fucking wet for me.”

The movements of your hand halted, your hips raising with a small moan leaving you as he began to rub a little more forcefully. Your back arched, another louder moan falling from your lips when he suddenly removed his finger from your clit, two of his long fingers plunging into your heat. Your walls tightened around them greedily, the wet sounds of your arousal meeting your ears as he fucked you with the slender digits. It was almost embarrassing how much you wanted him, how much you needed him, but you were too far gone to care.

“Baekhyun, please,” you panted out between whimpers. “I want you to fuck me.”

His lips pressed hard against yours briefly before he removed his fingers from you. He began to move away from you, though you quickly gripped his shoulders to stop him.

“I’m on birth control,” You told him, impatience and a tinge of neediness showing in your tone. “I want to feel you.”

His eyes somehow seemed to grow even darker as he looked down at you, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

“Alright, baby,” He said, his fingers that had just been inside you moving up to brush against your slightly parted lips as you looked up at him. “But I need you to be quiet, so you’re going to suck on my fingers while I fuck you, understand?”

You parted your lips even more in answer as you looked up at him, happy to give him what he wanted as long as he would fuck you. A devilish grin took over his face as he pushed his fingers into your mouth and you moaned around his digits as you tasted yourself on them. You swirled your tongue around them as you wrapped your legs around his hips, trying to pull him closer to you.  

A choked cry escaped you when he plunged into you without warning, the fingers in your mouth muffling the sound. He didn’t give you time to adjust, pulling back and snapping his hips back into you roughly. He set a hard and brutal pace, one of your hands tangling in his hair as the other scratched at the skin of his taut back. Your back arched, your chest pressing against his as your muffled cries and his quiet moans filled the air, along with the sounds of skin hitting skin.

He fucked you relentlessly, his hips pounding into yours as you writhed beneath him. You brushed your tongue against his fingers before sucking hard, relishing in the sounds that he made and the feel of the metal from his rings against your lips.  

Your orgasm was building rapidly as he pounded into you, your walls clenching around him as the ball of heat in your stomach grew. Your cries around his fingers grew louder as his movements became rougher, somehow thrusting into you much deeper than before. His fingers left your mouth, his hand moving to grip the pillow beside your head tightly, your moans mingling together.

With one more forceful thrust of his hips, the ball of heat in your stomach exploded, your walls clenching around him with a vice-like grip as white spots danced behind your closed eyelids. His hips stuttered and he groaned loudly in your ear as he fell over with you, your body trembling beneath him.

His body rested on yours for a moment, the both of you trying to catch your breath, before he pulled out of you, collapsing onto the bed beside you with a small, contented sigh.

You grimaced slightly at the extra wetness between your legs and Baekhyun quietly rolled out of bed, heading into the bathroom before coming back with a cloth for you. You cleaned yourself quickly before he took the cloth from you, heading back to the bathroom before coming back and crawling back into bed with another quiet sigh. You snuggled into the covers when he pulled it to cover the both of you, tensing slightly when he wrapped an arm around your waist, burying his face into the crook of your neck.

Neither of you said anything for a while and you gradually began to relax, enjoying the feeling of his breath on the skin of your neck. Your mind kept wandering back to what he’d told you earlier, questioning if it would be a good idea to bring it up. You nibbled on your lower lip as you debated with yourself, before you shifted slightly, opening your mouth to speak. You had to know.

“Baekhyun?” You asked quietly, wondering if he’d fallen asleep.

He hummed slightly in response, his hand on your waist tightening briefly to let you know that he was awake and listening.

“Did you…” You trailed off, actually wondering if it was worth asking. If it would change anything either way. You took a steadying breath before you continued. “Did you really miss me?”

He tensed briefly, not saying anything for a while. He slowly relaxed, letting out a small sigh before he spoke, his voice barely audible.

“Yeah. I meant it.”

“Oh… Okay,” You mumbled quietly, unsure what else to say. It actually scared you a little, that he did mean it. He was so closed off, so unwilling to let you in, even a little. Did this mean that he was starting to? Or would things continue on the way that they have been since you first met him?

He lifted his head, placing it on the pillow beside you and you turned to look at him. His deep red hair fell over his eyes, that same almost soft look in them that had been there earlier. His skin was pale in the darkness, his lips still slightly swollen from the kisses that you’d shared. He was beautiful and you felt your heart clench a little when you thought of just how much you’d missed him, how much you actually liked him… because you knew that while he told you that he’d missed you, he’d never feel the same. He was too damaged.

“I’m sorry,” he said suddenly, the sincerity in his eyes surprising you for a moment. You knew that he was apologizing about the recent argument.

“It’s fine,” you mumbled quietly, closing your eyes and snuggling deeper into the pillow.

“No, it’s not,” he replied, tugging you a little closer to him and shifting, burying his nose into your hair before he continued to speak quietly. “I was just… worried. But I shouldn’t have tried to tell you what to do.”

You hummed quietly, tiredness overtaking you, though you forced yourself to stay awake and listen to him. You weren’t expecting the apology, it was totally unlike him.

“I overreacted. His friends… aren’t the best influence. They’re trouble and I don’t want you to get hurt,” he mumbled softly, not giving you a chance to respond before he continued. “I’m also sorry for the way I treated you when we met. In my line of work, I have to be careful who I trust and my last nanny left a bad impression. She lied to me, used me, stole from me… I figured I’d be better off without letting someone else in, especially when you’d be around Soyeon.”

“Baekhyun, I understand. I… will be careful, okay?” You told him, unwilling to agree to actually stay away from BamBam. You still thought that he was overreacting.

You couldn’t stop the loud yawn that escaped you and Baekhyun chuckled softly, shifting so that he was comfortably wrapped around you in the darkness.

“Sleep, love. I kept you up for too long.”

You didn’t answer, smiling sleepily as he buried his face into your neck again, nuzzling against you gently. Something had changed between you two with him opening up to you, even if it was just a little. You still had your doubts on if it would be a good or bad change, but you were much too tired and far too content in his arms to care. You’d cross that bridge when you came to it.


	7. Part 7

Baekhyun sighed as he slammed the door of his car shut, wishing for his mind to turn off for just a moment. Ever since that night when he’d called you over in the middle of the night, his confusion had just seemed to grow.

He’d never meant for things to escalate the way that they had with you or for him to start to actually feel things toward you other than lust. He’d been attracted to you, that was a given. You were beautiful, of course he would be. He hadn’t felt anything since Jia, however, and he had no idea what to do about the feelings that you’d been stirring in him; he was scared.

His eyes fell on Soyeon when he noticed her coming toward him, a frown forming on his face when he noticed how quiet she was. She’d usually run out like a hyperactive puppy, blabbering a mile a minute and the way that she walked over to him quietly was concerning.

“Hey, princess, did you have a good day?” He asked her, turning to walk back to the car as she put her small hand in his, trudging along beside him.

When all she did was give a tiny shrug, he knew for a fact that something was wrong. He just needed to find out what it was. Opening the back seat of the car and helping her inside, he strapped her in before walking around to get into the driver’s seat.

He pushed all thoughts of you out of his mind, not wanting to deal with any of it right now and instead tried to focus on his daughter. He was going to ask what was wrong once he was on the road when she spoke up herself.

“Daddy…” Soyeon mumbled, looking down at her lap as she played with the hem of her skirt. “Where’s mommy?”

Baekhyun forgot how to breathe when the question passed his little girl’s lips. He couldn’t handle this right now, not with everything else that was going on. He was confused enough, emotional enough, without having to explain to a four year old why her mother wasn’t around.

It was too much. His emotions were a rollercoaster when it came to you, one minute wanting to hold you and to have whispered talks at 2am and the next wanting you as far away from him as possible. Given the fact that he knew that he was developing feelings for you, a process he wanted to stop and yet had no idea how to, the fact that in so many ways you reminded him of Jia only made things worse.

“Daddy?” Soyeon asked when she didn’t get a response and Baekhyun was pulled back from his thoughts with a jarring yank. He took a deep, unsteady breath, knowing that he was getting too worked up over just one simple question but he just couldn’t stop it.

“Soyeon we’re not talking about this today, okay?” Baekhyun replied, trying to keep calm. He hated how he could still get so shaken over the mere mention of the woman that had walked away from him and their daughter without looking back.

“But daddy…” Soyeon whined, pouting at him as she continued to try and get an explanation.

If Baekhyun had been calm and rational, he would have asked his own questions to find out why she was suddenly so curious, but he wasn’t. Instead, he burst, everything becoming too much for him in that precise moment.

“Soyeon, I said no!” He yelled, the little girl in the back flinching in fear and going quiet. Baekhyun never yelled at her.

The moment he glanced back and noticed the tears trailing down his daughters face, he was filled with regret. He was such an emotional wreck that he’d taken it out on his own child. He couldn’t tell her why, he couldn’t handle that right now but he definitely shouldn’t have shouted at her the way that he did.

He tried to apologise to her, to get her to stop crying but the little girl resolutely ignored him, huddled up in her seat as she continued to cry the entire drive home.

The moment they stepped into the apartment, Soyeon ran straight to her room, not even stopping to say hello to you like she usually would.

Baekhyun noticed the look of concern on your face as you looked after her, the conflicted look in your eyes over whether you should go after her or not. He felt a warmth spread in his chest when you walked down the hall toward Soyeon’s room, clearly worried about her. He wasn’t sure that he liked how that made him feel. It was all just so damned confusing.

He didn’t want to feel anything for you, he didn’t want all of these feelings that he couldn’t control. The contentment he felt when he was able to hold you, the way that he always desired to touch you, or to do something to see you smile; he didn’t want any of it. That was what he constantly told himself.

In reality, he knew that he did. He liked falling asleep breathing in your scent, and the fact that he slept well when you were near him. He loved seeing the way you cared for Soyeon and even the small ways in which you showed him that you cared for him too.

The problem was that he knew he couldn’t bring himself to do anything more than he already had where you were concerned. Commitment wasn’t something that he could risk. He couldn’t go through what he had with Jia again.

He stepped into the kitchen, running a hand through his hair in frustration when his mind landed on Jia, before allowing it to drop to his side as he went to get a glass of water.

Downing it quickly, he allowed his mind to follow its own course for once, going back to the time when he’d actually been happy instead of trying to bury those memories.

He didn’t know where he went wrong with her, what he could have done differently. She’d always hated being tangled up in the web that they were all trapped in, he knew that, but he’d truly believed that he made her as happy as she made him.

She’d allowed him to believe that, she’d worked to make him believe that and he’d trusted her enough to believe she’d never lie to him. When she’d gotten pregnant she’d led him to believe that she was happy, that she was content with the way that things were and he’d never seen just how much she longed to escape from it all until it all came crashing down.

Once she’d given birth to Soyeon, she vanished. He’d been distraught, left with a newborn baby and nothing but a note to tell him that she couldn’t stay, that she couldn’t pretend anymore. That this was never the life that she’d wanted for herself and she finally had decided to run away from it all.

So she’d left both him and Soyeon to go and start anew. Thanks to Junmyeon he’d learned just how much she’d hidden from him, about how long she’d prepared for it and how she’d met someone that she apparently truly loved, enough to completely leave the country to start over somewhere else.

Baekhyun had never been the same since then.

He was pulled back to reality when you stepped into the kitchen, a nervous look on your face as you watched him. He turned to lean against the counter, raising a brow at you in question and trying to ignore the fact that he didn’t like you being so nervous around him.

“Soyeon told me what happened when you picked her up from school,” you told him, your voice soft and yet clear and steady despite your nervous aura.

“Is she okay?” He asked, forcing his thoughts back to his daughter. He was worried about her and he should be focusing all his attention on her right now. But emotionally and mentally he was a mess, so it was taking a little bit of effort to drag himself back.

“Not really…” you replied with a small sigh, walking over to lean on the counter in front of him. “She’s upset and confused. You know that the other kids have been teasing her?”

“They what?” Baekhyun asked, looking over at you with surprised eyes.

“Come on, Baek. You know how cruel kids can be,” you responded with a small roll of your eyes. “You can’t really think that none of them would comment on the fact that her mother isn’t around?”

“I… actually didn’t,” Baekhyun replied, feeling ashamed. It should have been something that he’d thought of, but he hadn’t. He’d just been focused on the fact that Soyeon was happy and he thought that as long as he continued to love her, she’d continue to be so. He didn’t really consider outside factors.

“You need to explain it to her…”

As soon as those words left your mouth, Baekhyun began to panic, shaking his head swiftly. “No, I can’t do that.”

“Baekhyun, you have to. You can’t keep all this from her forever and if you keep up like this it’ll affect your relationship with her, do you want that?” You asked him, voice still soft and yet firm. At this precise moment, Baekhyun really wasn’t sure that he liked how smart you could be.

“How am I supposed to do that?” He asked, his voice cracking slightly on the question. He looked down at his feet, ignoring the fleeting look of surprise on your face at the fact he was unable to conceal his emotions as well as he usually did.

He heard you move and he tensed when he felt your arms wrap around him, slowly beginning to relax as he breathed in your scent. The both of you stayed quiet and eventually, he returned your hug, wrapping his arms around your waist and resting his head on your shoulder. He needed the comfort and he was unable to push you away when you were offering it so freely.

“I’ll help you. I’ll stay there the whole time, if that’s what you want,” you whispered to him, a hand rubbing small circles against his back to try to soothe him.

He said nothing for a while, trying to calm himself as you held him, eventually pulling away from the hug with a small nod.

“Ok. I’ll go and get Soyeon,” he said, unable to keep the apprehension from his face even though he was glad that you’d offered to help him with this. He knew that you were right and he couldn’t keep this from his daughter forever. He reached out, brushing a stray strand of hair away from your cheek and tucking it behind your ear before stepping away. “Thank you.”

He left the kitchen, making his way to his daughter’s room where he took a deep, steadying breath before knocking lightly and pushing the door open. His eyes instantly landed on Soyeon, who was curled up on her bed and whispering to one of her dolls.

She refused to look up at him as he moved over to her bed, where he took a seat at the edge. His heart hurt at how upset she was with him, that he’d upset her that much.

“I’m sorry, Princess.” Baekhyun murmured softly, reaching out to run his fingers through her soft hair. “Daddy didn’t mean to shout at you.”

“I didn’t mean to make you angry, daddy,” Soyeon whispered, looking up at him with her big eyes and a pout that was identical to his own.

“You didn’t, sweetheart. It wasn’t your fault, okay?” Baekhyun responded, feeling relieved when she nodded at him in response.

“Do you still want to know about your mom?” He asked, his hesitation clear in his voice but thankfully, Soyeon was far too young to notice his internal struggle and responded with an enthusiastic nod that he couldn’t help but smile at.

“Come on, then. We’ll talk about it in the other room, okay?” He said, standing up and picking her up when she stretched her arms up, clearly wanting to be carried.

He tried to take comfort in holding her, having his precious little girl in his arms but it was no use, not when he knew that what he was about to tell her would probably just hurt and confuse her more.

You were already seated on the couch when he walked into the living room. He put Soyeon on the couch as well before taking a seat between the two of you. When he turned to face his daughter, his nerves became too much and he found himself reaching out to take your hand, needing something to keep himself grounded. You gave his hand an encouraging squeeze and he took a deep breath before opening his mouth to speak.

“Your mommy loved you and your daddy very much…” he started off, throat tightening for a moment at the blatant lie, but he definitely would never tell her the truth about that, not ever. “But mommy wasn’t happy with her life, sweetheart.”

His voice was low as he explained it to her, soft as he tried to explain it to her as gently as he could and in a way that would hopefully cause her the least pain and confusion.

“I couldn’t give her the life that she wanted so mommy had to go away and start a new one. Mommy wasn’t happy with daddy and daddy let her go, so that she could be.”

Baekhyun licked his lips nervously as his daughter stared up at him, once again strangely quiet. He found himself wishing that he’d prepared for this moment better, or even at all because he was quite sure that he hadn’t explained it in the best way.

Her small face suddenly changes, showing clearly just how upset she is as tears fill her eyes and she says nothing as she gets up from the couch and runs off to her room, the door slamming loudly behind her.

Baekhyun squeezes your hand in silent thanks, not looking at you as he got up from the couch to follow after her. He felt terrible at the fact that his words had clearly hurt her but he didn’t know what to say or do.

When he got to her room, he found the door locked and his daughter refusing to let him in. It broke his heart to hear her crying from the other side of the door, and he fought to keep his own tears at bay.

He continued trying for a while, and eventually Soyeon’s cries quieted but she still wouldn’t let him in. He was leaning against the door, feeling completely drained due to how much of a mess everything was, when you gently touched his arm.

“Let me try?” You whispered softly, and he looked down to see that you’d gone to fetch the projector he’d gotten you as a gift. He nodded his head slightly, stepping back. He felt relieved that you cared enough to try.

He watched silently as you knocked on the door, trying to coax the little girl into letting you in, which she eventually did upon learning about the light you’d brought with you. You left the door slightly ajar when you entered but instead of following you he chose to stay outside and listen in instead.

He found himself smiling as he heard you answering her questions about the constellations that you were showing her, and explaining more in a simple way that she could understand, though his smile fell when the conversation changed direction.

As he listened to her explain that she felt like something must be wrong with her if her mommy didn’t want her, he couldn’t stop himself from crying, tears beginning to stream down his cheeks. His little girl truly believed that if her mommy could leave her then everyone else could leave her too. She explained that all of the nannies that she had always left and that no one wanted her.

He should be comforting her himself, he knew that,  but he couldn’t bring himself to go in, knowing that this was largely his fault. There had been so many people in and out of her life.

Instead, he chose to stand there and listen as you told his daughter the things that he should be telling her, that both you and he loved her and that neither of you would leave her.

//

Baekhyun was sat at Junmyeon’s kitchen island later that evening, glass of whiskey in hand as he tried to make sense of all of the conflicting emotions running riot inside him.

He didn’t like how jumbled his thoughts were, nor the fact that he was actually feeling anything at all. He was going to go crazy at this rate.

He finished downing what was left in the glass, putting it back on the counter with a thump before he slumped forward with his head in his arms and a small groan.

“What’s up with you?” Yixing asked, having seen the whole thing, walking over to get a fresh glass from one of the cupboards and getting himself a glass of water.

“I’m gonna go crazy, Yixing,” Baekhyun grumbled, barely audible because he hadn’t moved from his position.

Yixing walked over to the island, pulling out a stool to sit beside his friend. He waited for a few moments, fiddling with his glass, before getting tired of waiting for Baekhyun to speak.

“I can’t help if you don’t talk to me, Baekhyun, so talk.”

Baekhyun sat up with a sigh, reaching for the bottle of whiskey he’d left on the counter close to hand and pouring himself another. “Soyeon knows about Jia… she’s really upset.”

“Of course she is, that’s a lot for a four year old to find out,” Yixing told him simply.

“It’s not just that though,” Baekhyun replied, his frustration seeping into his tone. He took a sip of his drink before continuing. “Soyeon wouldn’t talk to me at all, so Buttercup talked to her instead. I just listened from outside…”

Yixing smiled briefly at the nickname, forcing it back down before Baekhyun noticed. He was pretty sure that the other man hadn’t noticed his habit of calling her that, but he found it amusing.

“So? Did it help?”

“She told her she won’t leave, Xing,” Baekhyun answered quietly, gazing down at the amber liquid in his glass.

Yixing blinked at him for a moment, confused, before everything started to click into place. He was upset about Soyeon, but he was more upset about you.

“Finally starting to admit that you like her, huh?” Yixing asked, with a small smile. When Baekhyun didn’t reply, instead just looking away, he took it as a good sign. “Why are you so conflicted? She obviously cares for the both of you quite a bit.”

“She reminds me of Jia,” Baekhyun answered, his voice so soft that it was barely audible. The conflicted look on his face changed to an angry glare when Yixing snorted at him.

“Sorry,” Yixing replied, his smile not in the least bit apologetic despite his words. “How does she remind you of Jia? She’s nothing like her. Like Jia would ever have had the guts to slap you in the face.”

“She’s so… kind, Yixing. You know she actually came all the way to mine at two in the morning just because she thought something was wrong with Soyeon?”

Yixing blinked at him for a moment, trying to think of how to phrase what he wanted to say without offending his friend.

“That doesn’t really sound like the Jia we all remember, Baek.”

“Not in the end, no,” Baekhyun replied with a small eye roll. “When we first got together she did that more than once just because I was sick.”

Yixing wasn’t sure what to say, as he’d never even known that Jia had done things like that for his friend. The Jia that he and everyone else remembers was vastly different, selfish and manipulative, though Baekhyun had never really seen those aspects of her personality until it was too late.

“She’s stubborn too,” Baekhyun continued. “She doesn’t listen to me, even if it’s for her own good. Not afraid to fight back either.”

That did remind Yixing a little more of Jia but he didn’t think it was a big enough likeness to matter. Especially when Jia rarely showed that side of herself.

“She’s so… confusing, Yixing. Infuriating too. One minute, she’s staying over, sleeping in my bed using me as a freaking pillow and the next she’s acting as though I’m not even there. She’ll smile, laugh, flirt, joke around… and then the next she won’t even stay in the same room as me for longer than 30 seconds. She’s so fucking frustrating!”

“Okay, somehow I don’t think we’re talking about Jia anymore,” Yixing tells his friend with a small grin that grew wider when his friend blinked at him in confusion, before looking away when he realised he’d just gone completely off track. “Baekhyun, she’s nothing like Jia, not really. You’re making excuses.”

“I…” Baekhyun started, only to trail off when he didn’t actually know what to say. “I just don’t know what to do, Yixing. I know that I like her, I just don’t know if I can do anything about it. I don’t know if it’s worth trying.”

“Baekhyun, you need to move on from Jia,” Yixing told him, softly yet still blunt. “She’s a good girl, pretty, clever… doesn’t put up with your attitude. She could be good for you. Why are you hesitating when she could make you happy?”

When Baekhyun said nothing, simply looking down at his glass once again, Yixing sighed and took a sip of his own water before spinning the glass in front of him on the counter.

“Some of us don’t even get this opportunity, Baekhyun. You shouldn’t waste it.”

Baekhyun shot his friend a sympathetic look, knowing that he was referring to his own fucked up love life. Yixing being in love with someone that he had to see and be around regularly, yet could never truly have due to the fact that she was married to someone else. It wasn’t possible for his friend to move on, it was far too complicated for that.

The both of them stayed quiet for a while, caught up in their own thoughts. Even though Baekhyun would never even consider giving Jia another chance if she decided to come back, which he highly doubted she ever would, that didn’t mean that he had to stay living in the past. He was holding himself there, keeping himself from moving forward. He had been for a long time.

He could move on and try to be happy with someone else, Yixing was right about that. He knew that his feelings were quickly growing past the simple ‘like’ stage and into something more. He could either just let it happen and move on or continue to let hate and misery control his life. He wasn’t really sure he wanted the latter anymore.


	8. Part 8

Releasing a small sigh, you slumped onto Baekhyun’s large couch tiredly. Sehun and Chen both chuckled at you while you glared at them in response to their amusement. Thanks to them, you’d had one hell of a time trying to get a hyperactive Soyeon into bed. You were looking forward to a bit of peace and quiet before you had to go out in a little while. You let your eyes slide shut, hoping for just five minutes of peace and quiet, though that quickly went out of the window when Sehun spoke.

“So, you and Baekhyun, huh?”

Your eyes shot back open pretty damn quickly at the question, your gaze flying over to him. He seemed amused by your reaction and he didn’t even try to hide it.

“What about me and Baekhyun? We’re just friends,” you told him, quirking a brow at him slightly.

“Friends that fuck and go on dates?” He asked bluntly with a quiet snort.

He wasn’t wrong to question it, things had changed with you and Baekhyun over the past month or so and even you were confused by it. Whenever you stayed over, you slept in his bed, he took you out a lot whilst getting one of the guys to keep an eye on Soyeon. He laughed more, he teased you more, he openly showed affection to you. Yet, you’d never exactly talked about any of it or what it meant so you settled for just friends.

Heartbreak wasn’t something that you wanted to experience and you knew that bringing it up, only for him to tell you that you’d misinterpreted all of his actions, would most definitely hurt more than you were prepared for. The changes that had occurred between the both of you since you’d first met him had you wanting more, you liked him and you weren’t ready to let it all go just yet.

“They’re not dates!” You replied adamantly, exhaling quietly as you let your eyes slide shut. Chen was being surprisingly quiet for once, simply listening to the ongoing conversation. “He specifically said that they’re not dates.”

“Oh, so you are fucking then?” Sehun said and you could  _literally_  hear the smirk that went along with it. “And they’re definitely dates.”

“Can you stop asking about my sex life?” You grumbled, squinting one eye open to look at him, though he just shrugged at you in response.

You had to admit that they did seem an awful lot like dates, and the way that you and Baekhyun were with each other definitely screamed something more than just friends, but you didn’t want to get your hopes up. Unfortunately, you  _were_  a little hopeful that it all meant something more and that fact alone was a little scary for you to admit.

“Aww, look at you, falling in love with the big bad wolf,” Chen chuckled, reaching out to ruffle your hair. Swatting his hand away in irritation, you sat up properly, glancing over at the television before pointing a finger at it accusingly.

“At least I actually like someone that knows that I exist,” you exclaimed, gesturing emphatically to the television.

“Ahhhh, look there’s the love of my life!” Chen said jokingly, putting a hand over his heart for good measure. Of course, Chen’s little celebrity crush would be on the screen at that precise moment. “Also, don’t think I didn’t miss the part where you admitted that you like him.”

“You heard nothing,” you mumbled, grabbing the cushion that you were leaning on and smacking him with it as he laughingly tried to block you.

“Ugh, I’m surrounded by lovesick idiots,” Sehun grumbled, though he did have a small smile on his face as he watched the two of you as you continued to hit Chen with the cushion. If he wasn’t going to stop you, why shouldn’t you keep at it?

“Seriously though,” Chen said with a laugh as he finally grabbed your weapon before you could land another hit, before looking at you a little more seriously. “Baekhyun is a great guy once you move past the angsty bad boy facade and it’s obvious that he’s serious about you. He wouldn’t be acting the way that he is if he wasn’t.”

You weren’t really sure how to take his words or if you even wanted to continue the conversation. It was already difficult enough knowing that your feelings for Baekhyun were growing, that you definitely did like him and that you didn’t know what to do about it; or if you even  _should_  do anything about it. As far as you were concerned, he looked at you as a friend that he liked to fuck from time to time and go out with.

“What are your plans for tonight, then?” Sehun asked, seemingly changing the subject, though that was proven wrong when you answered without really thinking about it.

“Going out with Baekhyun while Kai babysits…”

“Exactly. A date!” Sehun responded, nodding his head in a way that said he had everything figured out and no one would be able to change his mind.

“You’re so oblivious, I can’t decide if it’s cute or annoying,” Chen said and you glared at him, reaching for another cushion to smack him with.

“Can you two just shut up?” You demanded, launching a cushion as soon as you grabbed it.

//

Finally, you and Bambam found more time to work on your project together, though you actually weren’t being much help due to paying more attention to your phone. You probably should have felt bad about it but really, you couldn’t as you’d already done most of the work without him. You’d still set your phone aside an hour ago after deciding that you should probably give him some help.

Your phone vibrated on the table and you reached for it, a small smile forming when you saw that Baekhyun had texted you instead of one of your friends.

_[Baekhyun: 15.46pm] Do you miss me? Type “Y” for yes ;)_

You couldn’t help but snort out a small laugh as you read the message, it was Baekhyun all over.

_[You: 15:46pm] N for No_

You were about to put your phone back down, expecting him to take a while to reply when your phone vibrated in your hand again.

_[Baekhyun: 15:47pm] That wasn’t even an option :(_

_[You: 15:47pm] Why would I miss you, I’m having a fine time doing school work. Much more fun than being around you._

_[Baekhyun: 15:48pm] Ouch. Harsh._

_[You: 15:48pm] Harsh but true. Now let me go back to work!_

You put your phone back down on the table, ignoring your phone when it vibrated again, going back to what you were doing before.

“So who’s got you smiling like a lovestruck teenager?” Bambam teased and you felt your cheeks heating up a little bit. You hadn’t even realized that he’d been watching you while you were smiling at your phone like an idiot.

“Just a friend. He’s Soyeon’s dad,” you replied, reaching for your phone with a small sigh when it vibrated again. You were so focused on your phone you didn’t notice the calculative look on Bambam’s face when you gave him that bit of information.

_[Baekhyun: 15:55pm] How long until you’re finished so I can pick you up? I think you’ll like my outfit for tonight ;)_

_[You: 15:56pm] I think you’ll like mine more. The jeans I’m wearing make my ass look great!_

_[You: 15:56pm] And I don’t know, it’d go a lot quicker if someone would stop distracting me!_

_[Baekhyun: 15:57pm] Alright go back to work, I want to see your ass in those jeans._

You chuckled quietly to yourself, locking your phone and putting it in your bag this time. Bambam had gone back to doing his work so you decided to do the same. The sooner you got it done the sooner you could leave.

//

He wasn’t lying when he said you’d like his outfit for today. He was dressed casually and simply, yet he just looked so  _soft_. The long-sleeved white shirt and black sweatpants, with the simple chain around his neck, screamed boyfriend. You had to make a conscious effort not to keep glancing over at him, especially with the way he kept licking his lips and how he looked with one hand on the wheel, expensive Rolex hugging his wrist. Looking that good while driving should be a sin.

The car came to a stop not too far from the night market that you were going to, though it was still a couple of minutes walk from where he parked the car. Once you’d climbed out, he took you by the hand to lead you in the right direction.

“Is there anything in particular that you want to eat?” He asked you and you pursed your lips slightly as you thought about it.

“Waffles?”

“You can’t just have waffles,” he told you with a quiet laugh, tugging you into the market. “Did you even have dinner yet? You need proper food too.”

“Whatever you want then,” you replied, pouting slightly because you really did want those waffles.

“Come on,” he told you with a small chuckle, leading you deeper into the market. “Stop pouting, you can have the waffle after. What’s your favorite food?”

You answered him, though you were a little confused by the sudden question. He simply nodded before dragging you towards some stalls, seemingly knowing exactly where he was going. Of course, he came to a stop right in front of a stall selling exactly what you’d just mentioned to him.

You had a nice time talking with him as you enjoyed the food he bought, not allowing you to pay for your own. You fired questions at each other, sometimes laughing at the others’ responses or questioning each other’s likes and dislikes. You couldn’t help the way that your mind kept going back to your conversation with Sehun and Chen the other day. The market was crowded and the way that he’d put his hand on your lower back to guide you, or move his body closer to yours when space was a little cramped, seemed much more than friendly to you.

The way that he was flirting, teasing and touching you affectionately also seemed to mean more than something that simple, though you didn’t gain the courage to mention it until after you’d eaten and walked around for a while before finally stopping to get the waffles that you’d been promised.

You glanced over at him after taking a bite of your waffle, taking a deep breath once you’d swallowed your mouthful, trying to gain the courage to bring up the subject.

“Baek?” you murmured, hoping that he wouldn’t hear you but of course he did, turning to you and looking at you questioningly. “When I was with Sehun and Chen the other day they said some things…”

“They spoke to you? Must have been a painful experience,” Baekhyun said when you trailed off and you couldn’t help but laugh a little, despite your nerves at the topic you were bringing up.

“They seem to think that we’re dating,” you told him, continuing on quickly to get it out of the way. “And that you like me as more than a friend.”

“They what?” Baekhyun asked with a chuckle. “That’s ridiculous and definitely not true.”

You were sure that you couldn’t mask the way that your face fell at his words. You’d known it’d hurt when you finally heard that from him but you didn’t expect it to hurt quite this much. Of course, he only saw you as a friend that he could fuck from time to time and he’d never led you to believe any differently, it was your own fault for getting your hopes up.

You stared down at your waffles as you walked along beside him, trying to ignore the stinging in your eyes. You were in public you couldn’t cry over it, especially not while he was right here with you. It was almost laughable, really, that in as little as a month you’d begun to like him so much that such simple words could cause you such pain. You were so focused on controlling your emotions you didn’t notice the conflicted look on his face, that quickly switched to one of determination before he pulled you to a stop.

“Shit, I’m sorry. Please don’t get upset,” he said, his voice sounding slightly panicked as he reached out to grip your chin gently, forcing you to look up at him.

“Baekhyun, I’m fine,” you told him, the smile that you gave him obviously forced though you didn’t really have it in you to make it more convincing.

“No I… do like you, I’m an idiot,” he blurted out, a slight pink quickly dusting his cheeks at the confession. “I just didn’t want to make things worse between us or come on too strong, I didn’t think you’d get upset.”

“Wait… they were right?” You asked him, looking at him with slightly wide eyes. While you’d been hopeful, you’d been much more prepared for the pain than him actually admitting it.

“That’s what I just said, can we change the subject now,” he grumbled, obviously embarrassed.

“Aww, you’re so cute when you’re blushing!” You teased and you would have probably squished his cheeks a little if it wasn’t for the death glare that he shot your way. “Well, if it makes it better for you then I think I like you too.”

“Think? What do you mean think?” He demanded, pouting slightly and you laughed because who knew Byun Baekhyun could be so cute.

“I thought you’d be happy to know that I hadn’t friend zoned you yet,” you told him, smiling widely at him and his pout quickly turned into a small scowl as he reached out for you to pull you closer to him.

“It hasn’t even been two minutes yet and you’re already pushing my buttons,” he told you and you grinned cheekily, about to shoot off a response when you saw something from the corner of your eye that caught your attention, though by the time you’d turned to face it fully it was gone.

“What is it?” Baekhyun asked you, looking over in the same direction.

“I just thought I saw someone that I know but I guess I was wrong.”

Baekhyun shrugged, reaching out to take a forkful of the waffle that you’d been eating and shoving it into your mouth. “You’ve barely eaten any yet, it’ll get cold.”

“Stop, that’s too much,” you choked out around the mouthful of waffle, glaring at him though he just smiled at you innocently in response.

“Hurry up and swallow it so I can kiss you already,” Baekhyun said and you deliberately took your time chewing it, making him wait.

The moment that you’d swallowed, he moved in to capture your lips with his in a kiss that was surprisingly soft and gentle, though of course this was Baekhyun so it didn’t stay that way for long. Neither of you noticed the figure watching the whole thing from behind one of the stalls.

//

Unsurprisingly, given that Baekhyun didn’t know how to keep his hands to himself where you were concerned and the fact that you hadn’t been lying about the jeans, you somehow found yourself in his lap with his seat pushed as far back as it could go around halfway home.

Thankfully, he’d at least had the sense to park up on one of the more secluded streets, though by this point you were sure you wouldn’t care either way and the tinted windows were so dark there wasn’t a chance of anyone seeing your heated makeout session anyway.

“I’ve been wanting to get my hands on this since I saw you in those jeans,” Baekhyun groaned, lips pressed against the skin of your throat as he kneaded your ass through the fabric. He began to suck at the skin, sinking his teeth in slightly to make sure that he’d leave marks behind and you pushed your hips downwards against his crotch in response as a small, whiny moan left your parted lips.

He moved his mouth upwards, leaving a heated trail up to your lips. He kissed you roughly, his tongue delving inside to play with yours as his hands moved from your ass to grip your hips tightly before pushing you down against his growing hardness. You began to grind your hips against his in response, your kisses becoming a little messy due to the intensifying neediness that you were both feeling.

“I really don’t want to have to wait until we get home,” Baekhyun grunted when you rubbed against him a bit more determinedly.

“Then don’t,” you panted in response, moving your own mouth lower to his throat, starting to pepper his smooth skin with your own bruises before giving them small kitten licks to soothe them a little.  

“Shit,” Baekhyun panted out at the feel of your tongue against his throat, bucking his hips up so that you could feel just how hard he was for you and you moaned slightly in response. “Get in the back.”

You obeyed him instantly, far too needy to care where you were. He helped you to climb off of him and maneuver yourself into the backseat where he quickly climbed into the back after you, not giving a fuck about the expensive seats. As soon as he was comfortable, he reached for you to tug you back onto his lap, reaching for the button on your jeans and popping it open quickly.

You didn’t bother to undress completely, simply removing your jeans so that he could have better access before straddling him properly and helping him to free him from his pants. You were more than ready for him, far too worked up but you didn’t care, simply allowing him to pull your panties to the side and line himself up with your entrance.

Gripping the chain around his neck, you pulled him in for a wet and very heated kiss as you sank down onto his length, the both of you groaning into the kiss at the sensation as he filled you. He gripped your hips so tightly that you knew there was a possibility of bruises, but you didn’t care, reveling in the fact that he wanted you so much.

You began to move, raising your hips and falling back down on him, slowly at first though it wasn’t long before you picked up the pace. You were far too gone to take your time, just wanting to reach your peak. Baekhyun moved his mouth to your neck, moving one of his arms to wrap it around your waist as you rode him, his moans filling the small space along with your panting breaths and whimpers.

Your movements faltered when Baekhyun sank his teeth into the junction between your shoulder and your neck, your walls clenching around him in response.

“Fuck,” Baekhyun hissed, holding you in place as he began to thrust upwards into you forcefully. Your breath came out in harsh pants and whimpers, your thighs burning and your nails digging into his shoulders through his white shirt.

You’d fucked enough times at this point for him to know that you were getting close, removing one of his arms from behind you to bring it to the front, using his thumb to rub tight circles against your clit.

Your thighs were trembling, your walls clenching around him uncontrollably and all it took was one well-positioned thrust for your body to tense up, tremors wracking through your body as you came on top of him. His own orgasm followed shortly after, helped along by yours and he thrust into you a few more times as he moaned against your shoulder.

You slumped on top of him once it was over, struggling to catch your breath. Baekhyun wasn’t in much better condition than you, his own breathing harsh and heavy, though he did manage to let out a breathless chuckle as he reached up to move your hair out of your face before pressing a kiss against the skin of your cheek.

“Well, I did want to take my time with you at home but fuck, that was amazing,” He said with a small chuckle and you couldn’t help but laugh along with him.

“You can just come back to mine and take your time the second time around?” You suggested, shifting slightly on his lap, the both of you let out a small groan as you’d forgotten that he was still inside of you. You moved off of his lap, allowing him to sort out his own clothes as you tried to wriggle back into your jeans.

“Actually, that sounds like a good idea,” he said with a smirk. “We’d have to be quiet at mine and I want to make you scream.”

Given the fact that you’d literally just fucked him in the back seat of his car while practically fully clothed, you probably shouldn’t have blushed, but you still did. He was shameless.


	9. Part 9

Blinking sleepily at the pan on the stove in front of you, you tried to focus on cooking the eggs while suppressing the yawn that you could feel building. Steadily losing the battle, you gave in and used your free hand to tug up the collar of the red hoodie you’d stolen from Baekhyun, yawning into the soft fabric.

Baekhyun’s scent hit you, taking over your senses as you smiled softly to yourself. He’d stayed at your small apartment for the night, a rare occurrence that you’d made the most of, though now you were far too tired given that you actually had a full day of lectures ahead of you.

“I was wondering where my hoodie went,” Baekhyun said as he wrapped his arms around you from behind, chuckling when you jumped slightly due to not having heard him enter the room. “Is that all you’re wearing?”

You shook your head slightly, not answering his question, instead going back to cooking breakfast. You’d stumbled out of bed that morning and grabbed the first piece of clothing that you’d managed to find, Baekhyun’s hoodie, throwing it on over your naked form before beginning your quest for food. Telling him that you were, in fact, completely naked under his hoodie would probably result in neither of you eating breakfast, so instead you decided to keep your mouth shut.

You could feel the pout on his lips as he buried his face in the crook of your neck, obviously displeased that you’d decided to ignore his question. Baekhyun always got what he wanted though. His mouth pressed small kisses onto the skin of your neck, one of his hands beginning to wander, moving lower as the other grasped your hip. 

You leaned back into him, releasing a small sigh when the pads of his fingers brushed against the skin of your thighs, slowly moving up under the fabric in his mission to get his question answered. You felt his smile against your skin, knowing that you’d already given into his little unauthorized body search.

“Fuck, that’s hot,” Baekhyun groaned when his fingers reached their destination between your thighs, finding you completely bare. The sound that he made completely drowned out your own gasp, his hand that was still resting at your waist moving to turn off the burner. You knew what he wanted, his actions spoke for him and you were more than happy to give it to him. The eggs were probably ruined anyway.

He lifted his head, moving his hand from between your legs before turning you around quickly before hurriedly pressing his lips against yours. Quite inelegantly, he moved you away from the stove, kissing you roughly as he maneuvered you toward the counter. The granite pressed into your back as his body pressed into you from the front, his kisses frantic and hurried. Pressing your hands against his bare chest, you ran your nails across his skin softly, reveling in the way that you could hear his breath catch. His sweatpants did nothing to hide how much he wanted you, his hardness pressing against your thigh. Removing his lips from yours, he lifted you without warning, placing you on the counter.

You spread your legs, allowing him to move between them before you wrapped your legs around his waist. his lips leaving a blazing trail along your jaw. You whined softly, the sound slightly needy as you moved your hands to try and push his sweatpants down.

You could never keep your hands off of him, the smallest touches from him exciting you and causing you to forget everything but him and your need to have him buried deep inside of you. This time was no exception and Baekhyun was clearly just as desperate to feel your wetness around him given that he moved his hands to pull them down without complaint.

His hands quickly came back to your thighs, his teeth nibbling at the skin of your throat as his hands bunched the fabric of the hoodie, pulling it up so that it was settled around your waist before moving back to the apex of your thighs.

“Fuck, you’re so wet already,” he growled quietly, nipping at your skin just a little bit harder as you whimpered in response.

He wasted no time, quickly inserting a finger inside of you as his thumb moved to rub against your clit. You tried to shift your hips closer to him, wanting so much more than his fingers.

“Baekhyun, please!”

“What, baby? What do you want?” he asked you, his finger still moving as your walls tried to clench around it.

“More.” You moaned, nails digging into his bare shoulders.

“More? Like this?” He asked you, inserting a second finger as your hips jerked against his hand. You gazed up at him, noticing the quirked eyebrow. He was always such a tease.

“Your cock, Baekhyun. I want your cock,” you moaned impatiently, far too worked up to want to mess around.

“Are you going to ask nicely?”

If you weren’t so desperate for him to fuck you, you would have hit him. Instead, you gave him what he wanted.

“Please, Baek. Please fuck me,” you whined, resolving to get back at him later.

“As you wish,” he replied, the smirk on his face fading as he moved forward to kiss you just as furiously as before. Even when he was as desperate as you were, he still had it in him to be an ass.

Removing his fingers from you, he reached down to line himself up with your entrance, sliding into you with ease due to how ready you were for him. Your walls clamped around him tightly, a small moan leaving his parted lips as you whimpered in his ear.

His pace was fast, almost punishing in its intensity and it wasn’t long before your pants and whines were the only things that he could hear. His lips focused their attention on the skin of your neck, the tips of his fingers digging into your thighs so roughly they were sure to leave bruises.

“Who knew that fucking you while you wear my hoodie would be so hot,” he panted, his words finishing on a whine when your walls gripped him tightly.

The sounds of slapping skin filled the room, echoing around the small space, increasing your excitement. Your orgasm was building rapidly, the way that it always did when it was Baekhyun fucking you, his cock slamming into you. One of his hands moved, snaking around your waist and moving up your back to grasp your hair in a tight fist, pulling your head back as he lifted his own head to look down at you.

Your eyes locked with his, the darkness and hunger there causing you to whimper, the slight pain as he tugged at the strands exciting you more. His eyes never left you, watching every expression that flitted across your face as he fucked you roughly.

“You look so beautiful like this,” he breathed and you whined in response.

“Baek, please…” you whimpered and his free hand moved between you, moving to rub against your clit without you having to finish. He knew that you were close and what you wanted.

A few harsh rubs from his fingers had your body shuddering against him, your legs tightening their grip around him almost involuntarily as you fell apart, your eyes drifting shut as you just couldn’t keep them open anymore.

His own movements faltered slightly, hips stuttering as your walls clenched around him in a vice-like grip, his own grunts and moans replacing yours and drowning out your panting breaths. The hand between your legs moved to grasp your thigh, his hips moving rapidly as he chased his own release. It only took a few more thrusts before he froze, his hand in your hair clenching around the strands and tugging harshly as he reached his own peak with a drawn out moan.

He removed himself from you, releasing your hair as your legs released him. You were still catching your breath as he fixed his sweatpants, the small whine that you released when you glanced at the clock on the wall.

“Baek, really? I’m going to be late!” You complained to him with a small glare, which he simply responded to with a raised brow.

“Please, that is just as much your fault as it is mine.” He told you, a small smile tugging at his lips when you scowled at him, leaning forward to press a soft kiss against your forehead. “Go shower, I’ll drop you off and get your breakfast on the way.”

You couldn’t help but smile in return, knowing that he was right. You’d wanted it just as much, if not more than he had.  You watched as he turned away from you, reaching out to grab the burnt eggs and move them to the bin.

Your mind drifted briefly, thinking about just how content he made you since you’d started dating properly. He could still be arrogant, he was demanding and still just a little bit selfish. Yet, he somehow made you indescribably happy in the small moments like this, the rare soft sides of himself that he showed you more than making up for his flaws.

“Are you going to shower?”

The words caused you to start slightly and you grinned at him sheepishly, realizing that you’d just been staring at him, still half naked on the counter. You jumped down, a small skip in your step as you walked over to him to plant a small kiss on his cheek before making your way to the kitchen, the affectionate action taking him by surprise. There was a softness in his gaze as he watched you leave the small room, a look that reserved for you and you alone.

//

Sehun was the one that opened the door to Junmyeon’s mansion for you, stepping aside to allow you and Soyeon in. The little girl’s eyes lit up the moment that they landed on her favorite uncle, her small hand dropping yours as she bounded over to him.

“Hey, Sehun,” you said with a small smile, closing the door behind you as he greeted the small girl. “Where is he?”

“He?” He asked, picking up Soyeon and propping her on his hip. “Which one, Junmyeon or Baekhyun?”

You rolled your eyes at his teasing tone, deciding to inquire on Junmyeon’s whereabouts, though to be honest, you would also like to know where Baekhyun was too.

“Junmyeon is in his office,” he continued. “Baekhyun… I don’t actually know. You can go and find him though, I’ll keep an eye on the princess.”

“Thanks, Sehun!” You replied, smiling softly at the way that he booped Soyeon’s nose as the little girl squealed in delight. The love that these men had for her was always heartwarming.

Making your way through the mansion, toward Junmyeon’s office which you had actually only been to once before so you were surprised that you actually remembered the way, you came to a stop outside the door. There were voices coming from the room, clear for you to hear due to the fact that it had been left slightly ajar and you hesitated, wondering if you should interrupt or not.

“She can’t stay there, you need to get her out!”

The desperation in that voice, a voice that you didn’t recognize, made your mind up for you. This was obviously not a conversation that should be interrupted and his choice of wording had piqued your curiosity, so you decided to remain outside.

“Yixing, he has her next to him all the damned time, she can’t even  _breathe_  without his permission!” Another man bit back, his frustration and agitation clear to your ears despite the distance. “I’m already risking enough, I’m not risking anymore.”

The door was pulled open abruptly and you were greeted by cold, dark eyes glaring down at you. Quickly stepping out of the way, you stared after the stranger as he left. His black hair, dark circles around his eyes and sharp features were accompanied by an aura that screamed danger and you swallowed, wondering who he was and why he was in Junmyeon’s office.

You turned back, noticing that the other two men in the room could see you clearly and you cleared your throat uncomfortably before speaking. “The door was open…”

“I wasn’t expecting you today! At least give me some warning before coming, buttercup.” Junmyeon scolded you, his words softened slightly by the use of your nickname.

“Sorry,” you told him, smiling a little sheepishly. “Baekhyun asked me to bring Soyeon and meet him here, he’s going to drive us back.”

“Ah, so you’re buttercup!” the other man in the room stated, walking over to you with a dimpled smile and offering you a hand to shake, though the smile didn’t quite meet his eyes. “I’m Yixing, it’s nice to finally meet you! I’ve heard a lot about you.”

You winced slightly at another stranger using the nickname, though you were slowly starting to get used to it. It seemed to be all anyone called you these days. Reaching out, you took Yixing’s hand, bowing slightly in greeting.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Yixing. I hope they’ve only told you good things?” you questioned, throwing a small glare over to Junmyeon as Yixing chuckled quietly.

“Of course!” he told you, dropping your hand as you straightened yourself back up. “I should be going, I’ll allow you and Junmyeon to catch up.”

With those parting words, he quickly left the room. You stepped further into Junmyeon’s plush office, a movement from the corner of your eye catching your attention and you let out a small gasp.

“They multiplied! I swear you only brought one back from the shelter, why are there three?” You exclaimed once you finally registered that there were three kittens playing together in the small cat bed beside Junmyeon’s desk.

“Not even a proper greeting,” Junmyeon sighed, watching you with an affectionate look as you made your way over to the small bundles of fur. “You’ve been too busy to see me thanks to Baekhyun and now you can’t even greet me properly?”

“Sorry, Jun,” You responded, attention focussed firmly on the kittens, reaching out to pick one up as soon as you sat down next to their bed. “How have you been? Cute kittens by the way.”

You glanced up at your friend, noticing the small shake of his head as he moved over to sit at one of his leather couches.

“I’ve been good,” he replied and you grinned, knowing that he’d forgiven your oversight. “How have you been? How are things with Baekhyun?”

“I’ve been great,” you told him honestly, though the look he gave you in response was skeptical. “Things with Baekhyun have been great.”

If it was possible, the look on his face seemed to grow even more disbelieving.

“Are you sure? He’s treating you well?”

“I’ve never been happier, Jun. Really,” you told him gently. His concern for you touched your heart and you wondered what you’d ever done to deserve someone such as him in your life. He was far, far too good. “He treats me like I’m everything, I couldn’t ask for more.”

“So, he’s not being an idiot?”

You snorted at that question, unable to control your laughter.

“Jun, seriously,” you told him between giggles. “It’s Baek, of course he’s an idiot. He can still be a bit of a dick sometimes but he’s trying. He goes out of his way to make it up to me and he’s nowhere near as bad as he used to be. I really, really like him, Jun. He’s been through a lot but we’re getting there.”

Your best friend looked at you for a moment before giving a small nod, a small smile on his face. “I just wanted to be sure. I care about you, you know.”

“I know you do and I love you for it,” you told him, climbing up from the floor with a small black kitten in your arms. You made your way over to the couch, flopping down onto the leather beside him.

“I just want you to be happy. Both of you, really. You deserve it so much,” he told you earnestly and you could feel the love and affection that he held for you in his words.

“I am, Jun. Really, I am,” you informed him with a happy smile. “So, why don’t you tell me how these little ones multiplied?”

He glanced down at the kitten that you were stroking, shaking his head slightly.

“There’s nothing to tell, really,” Junmeyon started with a quiet sigh, shifting himself to settle more comfortably on the couch. It’d been a while since he’d had the opportunity to talk to you alone and he was going to make the most of it. “I heard that kittens are good for stress relief and well… the girl that works at the shelter is always a bonus.”

You laughed loudly, startling the small kitten who jumped down from your lap in consternation at your loudness. “I knew it! I knew you fancied her! Do you want some help? I think I’d make quite a good matchmaker, you know.”

“No! I can manage perfectly fine by myself, thank you!”

//

Baekhyun could hear your laughter before he even reached the door to the office, a small, blissful smile taking over his face as he let the sound fill him. He’d never thought that he would feel this way again, that something as simple as a giggle from a girl could fill him with such warmth. He’d never believed that he would be able to care for another woman the way that he did you and if he was being totally honest with himself, you’d quickly overtaken Jia in every aspect.

He wanted your laughter in his ears, he wanted your affectionate gazes and loving touches. Even the annoyed pout and purse of your lips when he did something that you found exasperating, the light slaps that you would give him when his teasing got out of control, not enough to hurt but just enough to get your point across. He loved all of it, he needed all of it, much more than he ever had with Jia.

“What’s got you so happy?” Baekhyun asked as he stepped into the office, Soyeon clapping her hands happily as soon as her eyes landed on the tiny kittens playing at your feet, rushing over to play. He made a mental note to speak to Junmyeon about getting a kitten since Soyeon had been begging for one since her trip to the shelter.

“Junmyeon has a crush!” You sang cheekily, poking the male beside you teasingly before turning back to Baekhyun, a sparkle of amusement in your eyes.

“Is that so?” Baekhyun inquired, walking over to press a kiss to the top of your head, the scent of your shampoo filling his nostrils. It had quickly become one of his favorite scents.

“That is none of your business,” Junmyeon responded as Baekhyun sat on the couch beside you, his arm naturally settling itself on the back of the couch across your shoulders without him even having to put thought into it.

“Oh, come on. Please just admit it already,” you all but begged, pressing yourself into Baekhyun’s side as he watched on in amusement. “You deserve to be happy too, you know. You’re always working and so busy. Make some time for yourself.”

“If I promise you to make more time for myself will you drop the subject? We’ve been at this for over half an hour now,” Junmyeon asked you with an exasperated sigh and Baekhyun couldn’t help but chuckle. Clearly, you had been giving Junmyeon a hard time in his absence.

“Come on, love, I’m sure he’s doing things at his own pace,” Baekhyun told you, the tips of his fingers tangling in your hair slightly as he stroked it. 

"Can I talk to you?” Junmyeon asked Baekhyun, looking at him questioningly before glancing over at you. “Can you keep an eye on Soyeon for us?”

You nodded and Baekhyun released a small sigh, quite enjoying the way that you were pressed up against his side. He didn’t want to leave the couch, but if Junmyeon wanted to talk to him then he didn’t really have much of a choice in the matter.

He pushed himself from the couch, telling you quietly that he’d be back soon before following Junmyeon from the room, walking beside him along the hallway toward the large kitchen.

“Well, she seems happy,” Junmyeon started and Baekhyun looked over at him, eyes widening slightly. He should have guessed that Junmyeon would want to talk about your relationship. He cared for you, you were important to him. “You’re happy too?”

Baekhyun stayed quiet for a moment, his mouth opening before he closed it again. It wasn’t easy for him to open up to anyone, but he knew that if he wanted Junmyeon to approve of your relationship that he would have to. Junmyeon was more than a best friend to you, he was like an older brother.

“Yeah, I am…” Baekhyun started, coming to a stop as they neared the kitchen, the voices from inside reaching his ears. This wasn’t a conversation that he wanted to have with more people around.

“Do you think you can keep making her happy?” Junmyeon asked him, coming to a stop beside him and leaning against the wall comfortably.

“I’ll do my best. - Junmyeon I know that you care about her and I don’t exactly have the best track record where she is concerned but I’m trying here.” Baekhyun told him and he meant it. It wasn’t easy for him to open up to someone, especially a woman, but he was doing his best.

“I know you are, I can see that but she’s important to me. I’m allowed to worry aren’t I?”

“I care about her too, more than I can say. I want to be the reason that she smiles, that she laughs. I want to be the one to put that sparkle in her eye when she’s amused. I want to be with her and I’ll work to make it happen. Can you just trust me?” Baekhyun said earnestly, his sincerity seeping through in his tone.

He never thought that he’d feel so content with someone again, yet you’d slowly forced your way in and made yourself at home. Now, he didn’t even want to think about what his days would be like without you in them. Without your touch, your smile, your eyes landing on him and the way that they crinkled up at the corners slightly when you smiled at him.

He wasn’t sure when exactly he’d fallen for you, but he had. He was ready to admit it to himself but he wasn’t ready to own up to you yet, to give you that power over him already but he didn’t want to imagine a future without you in it. Which is why Junmyeon’s next words had him tensing, an involuntary reaction to a subject that he didn’t want to approach yet.

“I do trust you, Baek, really. But… what we do, you’ll have to tell her Baekhyun.” Junmyeon told him quietly, if not a little bit warily. It was a tough subject for Baekhyun, given that it was what they did that cost him Jia. 

“I know and I will…” Baekhyun told him after a brief pause, his words uncharacteristically quiet. “Just not yet. I can’t yet.”

“The sooner you do it the better, Baekhyun,” Junmyeon said to him, his words soft but trying to get his point across, knowing that Baekhyun needed to hear it and that he would need a push in the right direction. He didn’t want everything to fall apart for either of you due to secrets. “If you keep it from her for too long she’ll feel deceived and lied to and trust me when I say that isn’t something that you want. She’ll feel like you’ve taken away her ability to make her own decisions regarding the situation and that won’t go well, for any of us.”

“I know. I will, Junmyeon, I just need some more time.”

Baekhyun wasn’t lying when he told his friend that he had every intention of telling you eventually, he just needed to prepare himself for your reaction. There was a very real possibility of you wanting nothing to do with him once he told you and he wasn’t ready to face it. Junmyeon had kept it to himself because you were simply a friend. Things had changed now that you were dating one of them, they couldn’t keep it from you any longer but he didn’t think that he would ever be ready to face that possibility of you walking away, not when he felt for you as strongly as he did. The prospect was terrifying for him, especially given his history. 

“Well as long as you do,” Junmeyon responded, pushing away from the wall and entering the kitchen, clearly having said everything that he had to say. Baekhyun followed behind him, trying to push down the fear that Junmyeon’s words had ignited within him. “I’m glad to see you letting someone in. She’s been good for you and she seems content. Just don’t do anything to hurt her, Baekhyun. I’m sure you wouldn’t like a trip down to the basement with Yixing.”

“The basement?” Chanyeol mumbled around the toast that he’d just stuck in his mouth, seated at the large, pristine island with Jongdae sat beside him with his own snack. His eyes were wide as he looked over at Junmyeon in absolute horror.

“Not you, idiot, Baekhyun."  Jongdae scoffed, nudging him in the ribs with an elbow and causing the other man to choke on his mouthful of food.

"Ohh, okay then.” Chanyeol choked out once he’d stopped coughing, Jongdae snickering beside him as Junmyeon ignored them both, walking over to one of the cupboards to grab a glass. Baekhyun rolled his eyes, walking over to take a seat at the island, deciding to join Chanyeol and Jongdae for a while. He wanted to distract himself from the conversation with Junmyeon and spending some time with the two idiots would be perfect. 

//

It was a few days later when Tao caught them all by surprise, bursting into Junmyeon’s office without warning. Baekhyun was already annoyed, having been dragged into a meeting about someone that he couldn’t really give two shits about and how to deal with them when he should have been collecting Soyeon from school with you before going to the park, something he’d discovered that you did every week. 

“We have a problem,” Tao had panted, his breathing ragged as though he’d come to them in a hurry, which given the work that he did for them it couldn’t be for anything good. Every single set of eyes were on Tao, looking at him with a mix of expectation and apprehension. Baekhyun wasn’t any different. 

The moment he told everyone why he was there, the room strangely silent aside from Tao’s voice speaking rapidly, Baekhyun’s mind blanked. He heard the words that passed the other mans lips, that you’d been taken, that Soyeon had been taken but he was unable to process them. Tao kept going, words of GOT7 and Antares and the alliance that they’d formed to try and push EXO out, to take control of the city. They’d all known that Kris had never forgiven Junmyeon for their history, the two groups constantly at war and yet never making progress against the other.

They should have seen it coming, really. It was only a matter of time before one of them started recruiting other gangs; unfortunately, Antares had moved first. There were loud voices filling the room, questions being thrown around, the tense atmosphere finally pulling Baekhyun from his daze as he began to curse loudly and repeatedly as he fumbled for his phone.

Pressing the phone to his ear, he prayed for you to pick up, only to be left disappointed when the phone went to voicemail. He tried again and again, only to be met with an automated message each time. His panic was rising and he could feel multiple sets of eyes on him, some looking at him in concern, some filled with apprehension and even some with pity. Baekhyun couldn’t help it, he snapped. 

“Fuck!” He yelled, throwing his phone violently, the flimsy piece of technology shattering against the wall with the force of his throw. Running his hands through his hair he looked to Junmyeon, his eyes pleading, begging him to contact you and tell him that it wasn’t true.

“It’ll be fine, Baek, I’m sure they’re both fine,” Junmyeon told him, reaching for the phone on his desk, quickly punching in a number.

“Don’t tell me that unless you can tell me where they are!” Baekhyun snapped, his jaw clenching as he slumped onto the arm of the couch beside Yixing, the other man putting a comforting hand on his shoulder, though it didn’t help in the slightest.

Tao had been extremely quiet since he’d informed them of what was going on, standing on the other side of the room to Baekhyun, clearly trying to keep as far away from him as possible. Baekhyun was volatile at the best of times and being the person to have to share this information with him genuinely scared him and Tao didn’t scare easily.

“How did you not know about this?” Baekhyun asked, the question clearly directed at the dark haired man trying to avoid his gaze. “What is the point in us having you there, if you’re not doing the one fucking thing that’s expected of you?!”

Tao visibly flinched when Baekhyun finished his question with a shout. He knew that Baekhyun was working hard to control himself, to control the murderous rage that was coursing through his veins. Tao couldn’t blame him, for placing the blame on him. He also blamed himself, though he couldn’t let it show.

Baekhyun’s attention turned to Junmyeon when he spoke, his voice quiet and polite yet Baekhyun could still detect the small traces of panic hidden beneath the surface. Apparently, he’d decided to contact your apartment security, though judging by the look on his face as he listened It wasn’t good news. Clearly, you hadn’t returned home yet.

Baekhyun’s anger became too much for him and he pushed himself up from the couch, plowing his fist into the nearest wall. The pain didn’t bother him, the blood that started to drip down his knuckles barely registering through the haze of anger that had taken over him.

“Baekhyun, please…” Yixing said quietly, walking over to where he now stood next to the wall, placing another hand on one of his heaving shoulders as Baekhyun breathed deeply, trying to control himself. “We’ll find them, but you’re not helping anyone like this.”

Knowing that Yixing was right, Baekhyun tried to calm himself, taking deep, even breaths as he tried to get his anger under control. Junmyeon finished the phone call with your apartment security, the quietness of the room broken by the sound of the receiver being placed back in its cradle. The moment the phone was back in its place, it began to ring.

Baekhyun glanced over the other man lifted the receiver again, noticing the way that his expression somehow darkened even more by whatever he heard on the other side. Reaching forward, Junmyeon pressed a button so that what he had heard could now be heard by all.

Baekhyun flinched when the sound of Soyeon crying loudly reached his ears, his fists clenched at his sides as Yixing’s grip on his shoulder tightened. There was the sound of a slap, your muffled cry of pain and Soyeon’s screams echoing around in Baekhyun’s muddled mind. He couldn’t think straight, he was at a loss as to what to do and his anger was blinding him.

“Suho! It’s been a while!” came through the phone, Soyeon’s cries growing quieter as the person on the other line took over. “I wish I could say it’s a pleasure to talk to you but we both know I’d be lying.”

“JB,” Junmyeon responded, his expression and voice reasonably calm, though the slight tremble to his voice when he spoke giving away the fact that he wasn’t as calm as he seemed. “Let’s get to the point. What do you want?" 

“Always so businesslike,” JB scolded tsked before giving a disappointed sigh. "No time for a catch-up?" 

Baekhyun pulled away from Yixing, the other man watching as he walked over to stand in front of Junmyeon’s desk. His eyes were fixated on the phone, the only expression on his face one of anger. None of them knew exactly what he was thinking, but they all knew that it couldn’t be anything pleasant.

"Cut the shit, JB,” Baekhyun gritted out, ignoring Junmyeon completely and his silent gestures asking Baekhyun to just let him handle it. “Is Soyeon okay? I swear, if you lay a finger on her-”

“Oh, please,” JB interrupted him, a small contemptuous laugh following his words. “The kid is fine and she’ll stay that way. I can’t promise that she won’t see things a child her age should see but she won’t be touched. I can’t say the same for your little girlfriend, though…”

Baekhyun grit his teeth, his eyes closing briefly as he allowed himself to feel a moments relief. While he knew that JB couldn’t be trusted, he needed something, anything, to cling to at the moment and he needed to believe that his little girl would be okay. It didn’t help much, not when he thought of all of the things that JB could do to you, but it did help just a little.

“So what is it that you want, JB?” Junmyeon asked him, taking back control of the conversation now that Baekhyun had the little bit of information that he so desperately wanted.

JB quickly fired off an address, Junmyeon making a note of it. “Come alone, Suho.”

Baekhyun heard a scoff from behind, one that sounded suspiciously like Jongdae and Baekhyun silently agreed. There was not a chance in hell that Junmyeon would be going alone. Apparently, they weren’t the only ones that disliked the idea of only Junmyeon meeting them.

Baekhyun’s eyes widened at the sound of a female voice demanding his presence as well, a voice that he recognized and one that filled him with even more anger and contempt. “Bring Baekhyun too, will you?”

“That won’t be a problem, I wouldn’t miss it,” Baekhyun replied, his voice radiating with fury. “I need to make sure that I’m the one to get my hands on you, after all, and I can promise you that I won’t kill you slowly. By the time I’m done with you, you’ll be begging me to put a bullet in your skull.”

“Brave words, considering. She’s very pretty, Baekhyun… maybe I should give her a try, like you did with my girl?” JB shot back. Baekhyun could hear the smirk in his voice and it just made him even more furious. “I’ll see you both.”

With those parting words, the call was disconnected. The room was quiet for a minute before people began to talk, trying to form a plan of action while Baekhyun continued to stare down at the now silent phone.  Baekhyun wasn’t an idiot, he knew that meeting them would be like walking death row and he also wanted the both of you back much sooner than that. The only question was, how the fuck were they supposed to find you?


End file.
